Managing bearers in a radio access network

ABSTRACT

Embodiments described herein relate to managing bearers in a radio access network (e.g., next generation RAN (NG-RAN), etc.). In one example, a central-unit control-plane (CU-CP) communicates with a distributed unit (DU) and a CU-UP to exchange transport network layer addresses (TNLAs) and tunnel endpoint identifiers (TEIDs) between the DU and the CU-UP. In this way, the DU becomes resistant to the CU-UP&#39;s rejection of a bearer setup request from the CU-CP during a bearer setup procedure. Furthermore, during virtual machine (VM) migration or local problems of the CU-UP, an E1 procedure known as “bearer relocate” can be defined to notify the DU of a new TNLA for one or more affected general packet radio service tunneling protocol (GTP) tunnels that are affected by the VM migration or local problems.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.16/277,658 filed on Feb. 15, 2019, entitled “MANAGING BEARERS IN A RADIOACCESS NETWORK,” which claims priority to U.S. Provisional ApplicationNo. 62/710,311, filed Feb. 16, 2018, which are hereby incorporated byreference in their entireties.

FIELD

Embodiments generally relate to the field of wireless communications.More particularly, embodiments described herein relate to managingbearers in a radio access network (e.g., Evolved Universal TerrestrialRadio Access Network (E-UTRAN), Next Generation Radio Access Network(NG-RAN), etc.).

BACKGROUND

The Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) has identified thefollowing objectives:

-   -   1. specification of the E1 general principles, functions, and        procedures; and    -   2. specification of the E1 Application Protocol (E1AP).

The E1AP includes the stage-three description of the E1 elementaryprocedures and messages, and the E1AP also includes the tabulardescription as well as the Abstract Syntax Notation One (ASN.1) codingfor the messages.

Version 15 of 3GPP Technical Report (TR) 38.806, entitled “Study ofseparation of NR Control Plane (CP) and User Plane (UP) for split option2” (Jan. 1, 2018), set forth a call flow from an idle state to aconnected state that includes a bearer setup. The bearer setup may beperformed in a base station (BS, e.g., a gNodeB, an eNodeB, etc.). TheBS can comprise a central-unit control-plane (CU-CP), a distributed unit(DU), and a central-unit user-plane (CU-UP). Furthermore, the BS may bepart of a system that includes the BS, a user equipment (UE), and a corenetwork (CN). One example of a CN is a fifth generation CN (5GC). ThegNodeB may also be referred to as a next generation radio access network(NG-RAN).

The bearer setup set forth in 3GPP TR 38.806 is as follows: (i) a CU-CPsets up a UE context in a DU; and (ii) the CU-CP sets up bearers in aCU-UP. Setting up the UE context includes the CU-CP sending an F1-AccessPoint (AP) UE context request to the DU, and the DU responding to theCU-CP with an F1-AP UE context response. Setting up the bearers includesthe CU-CP sending an E1-AP bearer setup request to the CU-UP, and theCU-UP responding to the CU-CP with an E1-AP bearer setup response.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

Embodiments described herein are illustrated by way of example and notlimitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings, in which likereferences indicate similar features. Furthermore, in the figures, someconventional details have been omitted so as not to obscure from theinventive concepts described herein.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example architecture of a system of a network, inaccordance with various embodiments.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example architecture of a system including a firstcore network (CN), in accordance with various embodiments.

FIG. 3 illustrates an architecture of a system including a second CN, inaccordance with various embodiments.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example of infrastructure equipment in accordancewith various embodiments.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example of a platform (or “device”) in accordancewith various embodiments.

FIG. 6 illustrates example components of baseband circuitry and radiofront end modules (RFEM) in accordance with various embodiments.

FIG. 7 illustrates example interfaces of baseband circuitry inaccordance with various embodiments.

FIG. 8 illustrates various protocol functions that may be implemented ina wireless communication device according to various embodiments.

FIG. 9 illustrates components of a core network in accordance withvarious embodiments.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating components, according to someexample embodiments, of a system to support network functionsvirtualization (NFV).

FIG. 11 is a block diagram illustrating components, according to someexample embodiments, able to read instructions from a machine-readableor computer-readable medium (e.g., a non-transitory machine-readablestorage medium) and perform any one or more of the methodologiesdiscussed herein.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram illustrating a next generation radio accessnetwork (NG-RAN) communicatively coupled to a fifth generation corenetwork (5GC), where the NG-RAN comprises a central-unit control-plane(CU-CP) a central-unit user-plane (CU-UP), and a distributed unit (DU),according to one embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a schematic illustration of a process of performing aninitial attach procedure using a CU-CP, a DU, and a CU-UP, according toone embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a schematic illustration of a process of performing a beareractivation procedure using a CU-CP, a DU, and a CU-UP, according to oneembodiment.

FIG. 15 is a schematic illustration of a process of performing a bearerrelocation procedure, according to one embodiment.

FIG. 16 is a flowchart illustration of a method of performing bearersetup during an initial attach procedure, according to one embodiment.

FIG. 17 is a flowchart illustration of a method of performing a beareractivation procedure, according to one embodiment.

FIG. 18 is a flowchart illustration of a method of performing a bearerrelocation procedure, according to one embodiment.

FIG. 19 is a flowchart illustration of a method of modifying bearers fora user equipment (UE), according to one embodiment.

FIG. 20 is a flowchart illustration of a method of modifying bearers fora UE, according to another embodiment.

FIG. 21 is a schematic illustration of process of a call flow from anidle state to a connected state with a bearer setup procedure embeddedin the call flow, according to one embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments described herein relate to managing bearers in a radioaccess network (RAN). Examples of RANs include, but are not limited to,LTE and NG-RAN. At least one embodiment is directed to procedures ofbearer management and exploiting centralized and virtualized deploymentof a central-unit user-plane (CU-UP). Embodiments of a central-unitcontrol-plane (CU-CP) set forth herein can be designed to determinewhich CU-UP of several CU-UPs and which transport network layer address(TNLA) of several TNLAs will be used for setting up a user equipment(UE) context before setting up the UE context begins (e.g., before adistributed unit (DU) is contacted by the CU-CP). Furthermore,embodiments described herein allow for a CU-UP's Tunnel EndpointIdentifiers (TEIDs), which are to be used on F1, to be allocated by theCU-UP and included in an E1-Application Protocol (AP) Bearer setupresponse sent to a CU-CP. Some embodiments are described in furtherdetail below in connection with at least FIGS. 12-21, while FIGS. 1-11describe systems and devices that may be configured to implement aspectsof the disclosure in accordance with some embodiments.

Several advantages accrue to the embodiments set forth herein. Oneadvantage is that the embodiments described herein can assist withimproving the resilience of a system comprised of a UE, base station(e.g., eNodeB, gNodeB, etc.), and a core network (CN). Another advantageis that embodiments described herein can assist with minimizing oreliminating packet loss when a CU-UP rejects an E1 bearer setup requestfrom a CU-CP, which can in turn assist with improving system resilience.Yet another advantage is that embodiments described herein can assistwith enabling virtual machine (VM) migration of a CU-UP, which is anotable upside of virtualization and cloud computing, by defining aprocedure to support bearer relocation.

In what follows, various operations may be described as multiplediscrete actions or operations, in a manner that is most helpful inunderstanding the claimed subject matter. However, the order ofdescription should not be construed as to imply that these operationsare necessarily order dependent. In particular, these operations may notbe performed in the order of presentation. Operations described may beperformed in a different order than the described embodiment. Variousadditional operations may be performed or described operations may beomitted in additional embodiments.

For the purposes of the present disclosure, the phrases “A or B,” “Aand/or B,” “A/B,” “at least one of A or B,” “at least one of A and B,”“one or more of A and B,” and “one or more of A or B” mean (A), (B), or(A and B).

The description may use the phrases “in an embodiment,” or “inembodiments,” which may each refer to one or more of the same ordifferent embodiments. Furthermore, the terms “comprising,” “including,”“having,” and the like, as used with respect to embodiments of thepresent disclosure, are synonymous.

As used herein, including in the claims, the term “circuitry” may referto, be part of, or include an Application Specific Integrated Circuit(ASIC), an electronic circuit, a processor (shared, dedicated, orgroup), and/or memory (shared, dedicated, or group) that execute one ormore software or firmware programs, a combinational logic circuit,and/or other suitable hardware components that provide the describedfunctionality. In some embodiments, the circuitry may be implemented in,or functions associated with the circuitry may be implemented by, one ormore software or firmware modules. In some embodiments, circuitry mayinclude logic, at least partially operable in hardware.

FIG. 1 illustrates an example architecture of a system 100 of a network,in accordance with various embodiments. The following description isprovided for an example system 100 that operates in conjunction with theLong Term Evolution (LTE) system standards and the Fifth Generation (5G)or New Radio (NR) system standards as provided by 3rd GenerationPartnership Project (3GPP) technical specifications (TS). However, theexample embodiments are not limited in this regard and the describedembodiments may apply to other networks that benefit from the principlesdescribed herein, such as future 3GPP systems (e.g., Sixth Generation(6G)) systems, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)802.16 protocols (e.g., Wireless metropolitan area networks (MAN),Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX), etc.), or thelike.

As shown by FIG. 1, the system 100 may include user equipment (UE) 101 aand UE 101 b (collectively referred to as “UEs 101” or “UE 101”). Asused herein, the term “user equipment” or “UE” may refer to a devicewith radio communication capabilities and may describe a remote user ofnetwork resources in a communications network. The term “user equipment”or “UE” may be considered synonymous to, and may be referred to as,client, mobile, mobile device, mobile terminal, user terminal, mobileunit, mobile station, mobile user, subscriber, user, remote station,access agent, user agent, receiver, radio equipment, reconfigurableradio equipment, reconfigurable mobile device, etc. Furthermore, theterm “user equipment” or “UE” may include any type of wireless/wireddevice or any computing device including a wireless communicationsinterface. In this example, UEs 101 are illustrated as smartphones(e.g., handheld touchscreen mobile computing devices connectable to oneor more cellular networks), but may also comprise any mobile ornon-mobile computing device, such as consumer electronics devices,cellular phones, smartphones, feature phones, tablet computers, wearablecomputer devices, personal digital assistants (PDAs), pagers, wirelesshandsets, desktop computers, laptop computers, in-vehicle infotainment(IVI), in-car entertainment (ICE) devices, an Instrument Cluster (IC),head-up display (HUD) devices, onboard diagnostic (OBD) devices, dashtopmobile equipment (DME), mobile data terminals (MDTs), Electronic EngineManagement System (EEMS), electronic/engine control units (ECUs),electronic/engine control modules (ECMs), embedded systems,microcontrollers, control modules, engine management systems (EMS),networked or “smart” appliances, machine-type communications (MTC)devices, enhanced Machine Type Communication (eMTC), Narrowband IoT(NB-IoT), further enhanced narrowband internet-of-things (feNB-IoT),machine-to-machine (M2M), Internet-of-Things (IoT) devices, and/or thelike.

In some embodiments, any of the UEs 101 can comprise aninternet-of-things (IoT) UE, which may comprise a network access layerdesigned for low-power IoT applications utilizing short-lived UEconnections. An IoT UE can utilize technologies such as M2M, eMTC,NB-IoT or MTC for exchanging data with an MTC server or device via apublic land mobile network (PLMN), Proximity-Based Service (ProSe) ordevice-to-device (D2D) communication, sensor networks, or IoT networks.The M2M, eMTC, NB-IoT or MTC exchange of data may be a machine-initiatedexchange of data. An IoT network describes interconnecting IoT UEs,which may include uniquely identifiable embedded computing devices(within the Internet infrastructure), with short-lived connections. TheIoT UEs may execute background applications (e.g., keep-alive messages,status updates, etc.) to facilitate the connections of the IoT network.

Referring again to FIG. 1, the UEs 101 may be configured to connect, forexample, communicatively couple, with an access network (AN) or radioaccess network (RAN) 110. In embodiments, the RAN 110 may be a nextgeneration (NG) RAN or a 5G RAN, an Evolved Universal MobileTelecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access Network(E-UTRAN), or a legacy RAN, such as a UTRAN (UMTS Terrestrial RadioAccess Network) or GERAN (GSM (Global System for Mobile Communicationsor Groupe Spécial Mobile) EDGE (GSM Evolution) Radio Access Network). Asused herein, the term “NG-RAN” or the like may refer to a RAN 110 thatoperates in an NR or 5G system 100, and the term “E-UTRAN” or the likemay refer to a RAN 110 that operates in an LTE or 4G system 100. The UEs101 utilize connections (or channels) 103 and 104, respectively, each ofwhich comprises a physical communications interface or layer (discussedin further detail below). As used herein, the term “channel” may referto any transmission medium, either tangible or intangible, that is usedto communicate data or a data stream. The term “channel” may besynonymous with and/or equivalent to “communications channel,” “datacommunications channel,” “transmission channel,” “data transmissionchannel,” “access channel,” “data access channel,” “link,” “data link,”“carrier,” “radiofrequency carrier,” and/or any other like term denotinga pathway or medium through which data is communicated. Additionally,the term “link” may refer to a connection between two devices through aRadio Access Technology (RAT) for the purpose of transmitting andreceiving information.

In this example, the connections 103 and 104 are illustrated as an airinterface to enable communicative coupling, and can be consistent withcellular communications protocols, such as a Global System for MobileCommunications (GSM) protocol, a code-division multiple access (CDMA)network protocol, a Push-to-Talk (PTT) protocol, a PTT over Cellular(POC) protocol, a Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS)protocol, a 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE) protocol, a fifth generation(5G) protocol, a New Radio (NR) protocol, and/or any of the othercommunications protocols discussed herein. In embodiments, the UEs 101may directly exchange communication data via a ProSe interface 105. TheProSe interface 105 may alternatively be referred to as a sidelink (SL)interface 105 and may comprise one or more logical channels, includingbut not limited to a Physical Sidelink Control Channel (PSCCH), aPhysical Sidelink Shared Channel (PSSCH), a Physical Sidelink DiscoveryChannel (PSDCH), and a Physical Sidelink Broadcast Channel (PSBCH).

The UE 101 b is shown to be configured to access an access point (AP)106 (also referred to as “WLAN node 106,” “WLAN 106,” “WLAN Termination106,” “WT 106” or the like) via connection 107. The connection 107 cancomprise a local wireless connection, such as a connection consistentwith any IEEE 802.11 protocol, wherein the AP 106 would comprise awireless fidelity (WiFi®) router. In this example, the AP 106 is shownto be connected to the Internet without connecting to the core networkof the wireless system (described in further detail below). In variousembodiments, the UE 101 b, RAN 110, and AP 106 may be configured toutilize LTE-WLAN aggregation (LWA) operation and/or WLAN LTE/WLAN RadioLevel Integration with IPsec Tunnel (LWIP) operation. The LWA operationmay involve the UE 101 b in RRC_CONNECTED being configured by a RAN node111 to utilize radio resources of LTE and WLAN. LWIP operation mayinvolve the UE 101 b using WLAN radio resources (e.g., connection 107)via Internet Protocol Security (IPsec) protocol tunneling toauthenticate and encrypt packets (e.g., interne protocol (IP) packets)sent over the connection 107. IPsec tunneling may include encapsulatingthe entirety of original IP packets and adding a new packet header,thereby protecting the original header of the IP packets.

The RAN 110 can include one or more AN nodes or RAN nodes 111 a and 111b (collectively referred to as “RAN nodes 111” or “RAN node 111”) thatenable the connections 103 and 104. As used herein, the terms “accessnode,” “access point,” or the like may describe equipment that providesthe radio baseband functions for data and/or voice connectivity betweena network and one or more users. These access nodes can be referred toas base stations (BS), next Generation NodeBs (gNBs), RAN nodes, evolvedNodeBs (eNBs), NodeBs, Road Side Units (RSUs), Transmission ReceptionPoints (TRxPs or TRPs), and so forth, and can comprise ground stations(e.g., terrestrial access points) or satellite stations providingcoverage within a geographic area (e.g., a cell). The term “Road SideUnit” or “RSU” may refer to any transportation infrastructure entityimplemented in or by a gNB/eNB/RAN node or a stationary (or relativelystationary) UE, where an RSU implemented in or by a UE may be referredto as a “UE-type RSU,” and an RSU implemented in or by an eNB may bereferred to as an “eNB-type RSU.” As used herein, the term “NG-RAN node”or the like may refer to a RAN node 111 that operates in an NR or 5Gsystem 100 (for example, a gNB), and the term “E-UTRAN node” or the likemay refer to a RAN node 111 that operates in an LTE or 4G system 100(e.g., an eNB). According to various embodiments, the RAN nodes 111 maybe implemented as one or more of a dedicated physical device such as amacrocell base station, and/or a low power (LP) base station forproviding femtocells, picocells or other like cells having smallercoverage areas, smaller user capacity, or higher bandwidth compared tomacrocells. In other embodiments, the RAN nodes 111 may be implementedas one or more software entities running on server computers as part ofa virtual network, which may be referred to as a cloud radio accessnetwork (CRAN). In other embodiments, the RAN nodes 111 may representindividual gNB-distributed units (DUs) that are connected to agNB-centralized unit (CU) via an F1 interface (not shown by FIG. 1).

Any of the RAN nodes 111 can terminate the air interface protocol andcan be the first point of contact for the UEs 101. In some embodiments,any of the RAN nodes 111 can fulfill various logical functions for theRAN 110, including, but not limited to, radio network controller (RNC)functions such as radio bearer management, uplink and downlink dynamicradio resource management and data packet scheduling, and mobilitymanagement.

In embodiments, the UEs 101 can be configured to communicate usingOrthogonal Frequency-Division Multiplexing (OFDM) communication signalswith each other or with any of the RAN nodes 111 over a multicarriercommunication channel in accordance with various communicationtechniques, such as, but not limited to, an OrthogonalFrequency-Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) communication technique(e.g., for downlink communications) or a Single Carrier FrequencyDivision Multiple Access (SC-FDMA) communication technique (e.g., foruplink and ProSe or sidelink communications), although the scope of theembodiments is not limited in this respect. The OFDM signals cancomprise a plurality of orthogonal subcarriers.

In some embodiments, a downlink resource grid can be used for downlinktransmissions from any of the RAN nodes 111 to the UEs 101, while uplinktransmissions can utilize similar techniques. The grid can be atime-frequency grid, called a resource grid or time-frequency resourcegrid, which is the physical resource in the downlink in each slot. Sucha time-frequency plane representation is a common practice for OFDMsystems, which makes it intuitive for radio resource allocation. Eachcolumn and each row of the resource grid corresponds to one OFDM symboland one OFDM subcarrier, respectively. The duration of the resource gridin the time domain corresponds to one slot in a radio frame. Thesmallest time-frequency unit in a resource grid is denoted as a resourceelement. Each resource grid comprises a number of resource blocks, whichdescribe the mapping of certain physical channels to resource elements.Each resource block comprises a collection of resource elements; in thefrequency domain, this may represent the smallest quantity of resourcesthat currently can be allocated. There are several different physicaldownlink channels that are conveyed using such resource blocks.

The physical downlink shared channel (PDSCH) may carry user data andhigher-layer signaling to the UEs 101. The physical downlink controlchannel (PDCCH) may carry information about the transport format andresource allocations related to the PDSCH channel, among other things.It may also inform the UEs 101 about the transport format, resourceallocation, and H-ARQ (Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request) informationrelated to the uplink shared channel. Typically, downlink scheduling(assigning control and shared channel resource blocks to the UE 101 bwithin a cell) may be performed at any of the RAN nodes 111 based onchannel quality information fed back from any of the UEs 101. Thedownlink resource assignment information may be sent on the PDCCH usedfor (e.g., assigned to) each of the UEs 101.

The PDCCH may use control channel elements (CCEs) to convey the controlinformation. Before being mapped to resource elements, the PDCCHcomplex-valued symbols may first be organized into quadruplets, whichmay then be permuted using a sub-block interleaver for rate matching.Each PDCCH may be transmitted using one or more of these CCEs, whereeach CCE may correspond to nine sets of four physical resource elementsknown as resource element groups (REGs). Four Quadrature Phase ShiftKeying (QPSK) symbols may be mapped to each REG. The PDCCH can betransmitted using one or more CCEs, depending on the size of thedownlink control information (DCI) and the channel condition. There canbe four or more different PDCCH formats defined in LTE with differentnumbers of CCEs (e.g., aggregation level, L=1, 2, 4, or 8).

Some embodiments may use concepts for resource allocation for controlchannel information that are an extension of the above-describedconcepts. For example, some embodiments may utilize an enhanced physicaldownlink control channel (EPDCCH) that uses PDSCH resources for controlinformation transmission. The EPDCCH may be transmitted using one ormore enhanced control channel elements (ECCEs). Similar to above, eachECCE may correspond to nine sets of four physical resource elementsknown as an enhanced resource element groups (EREGs). An ECCE may haveother numbers of EREGs in some situations.

The RAN nodes 111 may be configured to communicate with one another viainterface 112. In embodiments where the system 100 is an LTE system, theinterface 112 may be an X2 interface 112. The X2 interface may bedefined between two or more RAN nodes 111 (e.g., two or more eNBs andthe like) that connect to a CN 120, and/or between two eNBs connectingto CN 120. In some implementations, the X2 interface may include an X2user plane interface (X2-U) and an X2 control plane interface (X2-C).The X2-U may provide flow control mechanisms for user data packetstransferred over the X2 interface, and may be used to communicateinformation about the delivery of user data between eNBs. For example,the X2-U may provide specific sequence number information for user datatransferred from a master eNB (MeNB) to a secondary eNB (SeNB);information about successful in sequence delivery of packet dataconvergence protocol (PDCP) protocol data units (PDUs) to a UE 101 froman SeNB for user data; information of PDCP PDUs that were not deliveredto a UE 101; information about a current minimum desired buffer size atthe SeNB for transmitting to the UE user data; and the like. The X2-Cmay provide intra-LTE access mobility functionality, including contexttransfers from source to target eNBs, user plane transport control,etc.; load management functionality; as well as inter-cell interferencecoordination functionality.

In embodiments where the system 100 is a 5G or NR system, the interface112 may be an Xn interface 112. The Xn interface is defined between twoor more RAN nodes 111 (e.g., two or more gNBs and the like) that connectto CN 120 (e.g., a 5GC, etc.), between a RAN node 111 (e.g., a gNB)connecting to CN 120 and an eNB, and/or between two eNBs connecting toCN 120. In some implementations, the Xn interface may include an Xn userplane (Xn-U) interface and an Xn control plane (Xn-C) interface. TheXn-U may provide non-guaranteed delivery of user plane PDUs andsupport/provide data forwarding and flow control functionality. The Xn-Cmay provide management and error handling functionality, functionalityto manage the Xn-C interface; mobility support for UE 101 in a connectedmode (e.g., CM-CONNECTED) including functionality to manage the UEmobility for connected mode between one or more RAN nodes 111. Themobility support may include context transfer from an old (source)serviNG-RAN node 111 to new (target) serviNG-RAN node 111; and controlof user plane tunnels between old (source) serviNG-RAN node 111 to new(target) serviNG-RAN node 111. A protocol stack of the Xn-U may includea transport network layer built on Internet Protocol (IP) transportlayer, and a general packet radio service user plane (GTP-U) layer ontop of a user datagram protocol (UDP) and/or IP layer(s) to carry userplane PDUs. The Xn-C protocol stack may include an application layersignaling protocol (referred to as Xn Application Protocol (Xn-AP)) anda transport network layer that is built on a stream control transmissionprotocol (SCTP). The SCTP may be on top of an IP layer, and may providethe guaranteed delivery of application layer messages. In the transportIP layer, point-to-point transmission is used to deliver the signalingPDUs. In other implementations, the Xn-U protocol stack and/or the Xn-Cprotocol stack may be same as or similar to the user plane and/orcontrol plane protocol stack(s) shown and described herein.

The RAN 110 is shown to be communicatively coupled to a core network—inthis embodiment, Core Network (CN) 120. The CN 120 may comprise aplurality of network elements 122, which are configured to offer variousdata and telecommunications services to customers/subscribers (e.g.,users of UEs 101) who are connected to the CN 120 via the RAN 110. Theterm “network element” may describe a physical or virtualized equipmentused to provide wired or wireless communication network services. Theterm “network element” may be considered synonymous to and/or referredto as a networked computer, networking hardware, network equipment,router, switch, hub, bridge, radio network controller, radio accessnetwork device, gateway, server, virtualized network function (VNF),network functions virtualization infrastructure (NFVI), and/or the like.The components of the CN 120 may be implemented in one physical node orseparate physical nodes including components to read and executeinstructions from a machine-readable or computer-readable medium (e.g.,a non-transitory machine-readable storage medium). In some embodiments,network functions virtualization (NFV) may be utilized to virtualize anyor all of the above described network node functions via executableinstructions stored in one or more computer-readable storage mediums(described in further detail below). A logical instantiation of the CN120 may be referred to as a network slice, and a logical instantiationof a portion of the CN 120 may be referred to as a network sub-slice.NFV architectures and infrastructures may be used to virtualize one ormore network functions, alternatively performed by proprietary hardware,onto physical resources comprising a combination of industry-standardserver hardware, storage hardware, or switches. In other words, NFVsystems can be used to execute virtual or reconfigurable implementationsof one or more EPC components/functions.

Generally, the application server 130 may be an element offeringapplications that use IP bearer resources with the core network (CN)(e.g., UMTS Packet Services (PS) domain, LTE PS data services, etc.).The application server 130 can also be configured to support one or morecommunication services (e.g., Voice-over-Internet Protocol (VoIP)sessions, PTT sessions, group communication sessions, social networkingservices, etc.) for the UEs 101 via the EPC 120. The application server130 may communicate with the CN 120 via a communication interface 125.

In embodiments, the CN 120 may be a 5GC (referred to as “CN 120,” “5GC120,” or the like), and the RAN 110 may be connected with the CN 120 viaan interface 113. The interface 113 may be an NG interface. Inembodiments, when the interface 113 is an NG interface, the interface113 may be split into two parts, an NG user plane (NG-U) interface 114,which carries traffic data between the RAN nodes 111 and a user planefunction (UPF), and the S1 control plane (NG-C) interface 115, which isa signaling interface between the RAN nodes 111 and access and mobilityfunctions (AMFs). Embodiments where the CN 120 is a CN 120 are discussedin more detail with regard to FIG. 3.

In embodiments, the CN 120 may be a 5G CN (referred to as “CN 120” orthe like), while in other embodiments, the CN 120 may be an EvolvedPacket Core (EPC). Where CN 120 is an EPC (referred to as “EPC 120” orthe like), the RAN 110 may be connected with the CN 120 via an theinterface 113. When the CN 120 is an EPC, the interface 113 may bereferred to as an S1 interface 113. In embodiments where the interface113 is an S1 interface, the interface 113 may be split into two parts,an S1 user plane (S1-U) interface 114, which carries traffic databetween the RAN nodes 111 and the serving gateway (S-GW), and theS1-mobility management entity (MME) interface 115, which is a signalinginterface between the RAN nodes 111 and MMEs. An example architecturewherein the CN 120 is an EPC 120 is shown by FIG. 2.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example architecture of a system 200 including afirst CN 220, in accordance with various embodiments. In this example,system 200 may implement the LTE standard wherein the CN 220 is an EPC220 that corresponds with CN 120 of FIG. 1. Additionally, the UE 201 maybe the same as or similar to the UEs 101 of FIG. 1, and the EUTRAN 210may be a RAN that is the same as or similar to the RAN 110 of FIG. 1,and which may include RAN nodes 111 discussed previously. The CN 220 maycomprise MMEs 221, an S-GW 222, a Packet Data Network (PDN) Gateway(P-GW) 223, a home subscriber server (HSS) 224, and a Serving GeneralPacket Radio Service (GPRS) Support Nodes (SGSN) 225.

The MMEs 221 may be similar in function to the control plane of legacySGSN, and may implement mobility management (MM) functions to keep trackof the current location of a UE 201. The MMEs 221 may perform various MMprocedures to manage mobility aspects in access such as gatewayselection and tracking area list management. MM (also referred to as“EPS MM” or “EMM” in E-UTRAN systems) may refer to all applicableprocedures, methods, data storage, etc. that are used to maintainknowledge about a present location of the UE 201, provide user identityconfidentiality, and/or other like services to users/subscribers. EachUE 201 and the MME 221 may include an MM or EMM sublayer, and an MMcontext may be established in the UE 201 and the MME 221 when an attachprocedure is successfully completed. The MM context may be a datastructure or database object that stores MM-related information of theUE 201. The MMES 221 may be coupled with the HSS 224 via an S6areference point, coupled with the SGSN 225 via an S3 reference point,and coupled with the S-GW 222 via an S11 reference point.

The SGSN 225 may be a node that serves the UE 201 by tracking thelocation of an individual UE 201 and performing security functions. Inaddition, the SGSN 225 may perform Inter-EPC node signaling for mobilitybetween 2G/3G and E-UTRAN 3GPP access networks; PDN and S-GW selectionas specified by the MMES 221; handling of UE 201 time zone functions asspecified by the MMES 221; and MME selection for handovers to E-UTRAN3GPP access network. The S3 reference point between the MMES 221 and theSGSN 225 may enable user and bearer information exchange for inter-3GPPaccess network mobility in idle and/or active states.

The HSS 224 may comprise a database for network users, includingsubscription-related information to support the network entities'handling of communication sessions. The EPC 220 may comprise one orseveral HSSs 224, depending on the number of mobile subscribers, on thecapacity of the equipment, on the organization of the network, etc. Forexample, the HSS 224 can provide support for routing/roaming,authentication, authorization, naming/addressing resolution, locationdependencies, etc. An S6a reference point between the HSS 224 and theMMES 221 may enable transfer of subscription and authentication data forauthenticating/authorizing user access to the EPC 220 between HSS 224and the MMES 221.

The S-GW 222 may terminate the S1 interface (“S1-U” in FIG. 2) towardsthe RAN 210, and routes data packets between the RAN 210 and the EPC220. In addition, the S-GW 222 may be a local mobility anchor point forinter-RAN node handovers and also may provide an anchor for inter-3GPPmobility. Other responsibilities may include lawful intercept, charging,and some policy enforcement. The S11 reference point between the S-GW222 and the MMES 221 may provide a control plane between the MMES 221and the S-GW 222. The S-GW 222 may be coupled with the P-GW 223 via anS5 reference point.

The P-GW 223 may terminate an SGi interface toward a network directed toan operator's IP services 230 (e.g., a Packet Data Network (PDN), etc.)The P-GW 223 may route data packets between the EPC 220 and externalnetworks such as a network including the application server 130(alternatively referred to as application function (AF)) via acommunication interface 125, which is shown in FIG. 1. One example ofcommunication interface 125 is an Internet Protocol (IP) interface. Inembodiments, the P-GW 223 may be communicatively coupled to anapplication server (application server 130 of FIG. 1 or PDN 230 in FIG.2) via a communication interface 125 (see e.g., FIG. 1). The S5reference point between the P-GW 223 and the S-GW 222 may provide userplane tunneling and tunnel management between the P-GW 223 and the S-GW222. The S5 reference point may also be used for S-GW 222 relocation dueto UE 201 mobility and if the S-GW 222 needs to connect to anon-collocated P-GW 223 for the required PDN connectivity. The P-GW 223may further include a node for policy enforcement and charging datacollection (e.g., Policy and Charging Enforcement Function (PCEF) (notshown). Additionally, the SGi reference point between the P-GW 223 andthe packet data network (PDN) 230 may be an operator external public, aprivate PDN, or an intra operator packet data network, for example, forprovision of IP multimedia subsystem (IMS) services. The P-GW 223 may becoupled with a policy and charging enforcement function (PCEF) 226 via aGx reference point.

PCEF 226 is the policy and charging control element of the EPC 220. In anon-roaming scenario, there may be a single PCRF 226 in the Home PublicLand Mobile Network (HPLMN) associated with a UEs 201's InternetProtocol Connectivity Access Network (IP-CAN) session. In a roamingscenario with local breakout of traffic, there may be two PCRFsassociated with a UEs 201's IP-CAN session, a Home PCRF (H-PCRF) withinan HPLMN and a Visited PCRF (V-PCRF) within a Visited Public Land MobileNetwork (VPLMN). The PCRF may be communicatively coupled to theapplication server 130 via the P-GW 223. The application server 230 maysignal the PCRF to indicate a new service flow and select theappropriate Quality of Service (QoS) and charging parameters. The PCRF226 may provision this rule into a Policy and Charging EnforcementFunction (PCEF) (not shown) with the appropriate traffic flow template(TFT) and QoS class of identifier (QCI), which commences the QoS andcharging as specified by the application server 230. The Gx referencepoint between the PCRF 226 and the P-GW 223 may allow for the transferof (QoS) policy and charging rules from the PCRF 226 to Policy andCharging Enforcement Function (PCEF) in the P-GW 223. An Rx referencepoint may reside between the PDN 230 (or “AF 230”) and the PCRF 226.

FIG. 3 illustrates an architecture of a system 300 including a second CN320 in accordance with various embodiments. The system 300 is shown toinclude a UE 301, which may be the same as or similar to the UEs 101 andUE 201 discussed previously; a (R)AN 310, which may be the same as orsimilar to the RAN 110 and RAN 210 discussed previously, and which mayinclude RAN nodes 111 discussed previously; and a data network (DN) 303,which may be, for example, operator services, Internet access or 3rdparty services; and a 5G Core Network (5GC or CN) 320.

The 5GC 320 may include an authentication server function (AUSF) 322; anaccess and mobility management function (AMF) 321; a session managementfunction (SMF) 324; a network exposure function (NEF) 323; a policycontrol function (PCF) 326; a network function (NF) repository function(NRF) 325; a Unified Data Management (UDM) 327; an application function(AF) 328; a user plane function (UPF) 302; and a network slice selectionfunction (NSSF) 329.

The UPF 302 may act as an anchor point for intra-RAT and inter-RATmobility, an external PDU session point of interconnect to DN 303, and abranching point to support multi-homed PDU session. The UPF 302 may alsoperform packet routing and forwarding, packet inspection, enforce userplane part of policy rules, lawfully intercept packets (UP collection);traffic usage reporting, perform QoS handling for user plane (e.g.,packet filtering, gating, UL/DL rate enforcement), perform UplinkTraffic verification (e.g., service data flow (SDF) to QoS flowmapping), transport level packet marking in the uplink and downlink, anddownlink packet buffering and downlink data notification triggering. UPF302 may include an uplink classifier to support routing traffic flows toa data network. The DN 303 may represent various network operatorservices, Internet access, or third party services. DN 303 may include,or be similar to, application server 130 discussed previously. The UPF302 may interact with the SMF 324 via an N4 reference point between theSMF 324 and the UPF 302.

The AUSF 322 may store data for authentication of UE 301 and handleauthentication related functionality. The AUSF 322 may facilitate acommon authentication framework for various access types. The AUSF 322may communicate with the AMF 321 via an N12 reference point between theAMF 321 and the AUSF 322; and may communicate with the UDM 327 via anN13 reference point between the UDM 327 and the AUSF 322. Additionally,the AUSF 322 may exhibit an Nausf service-based interface.

The AMF 321 may be responsible for registration management (e.g., forregistering UE 301, etc.), connection management, reachabilitymanagement, mobility management, and lawful interception of AMF-relatedevents, and access authentication and authorization. The AMF 321 may bea termination point for the an N11 reference point between the AMF 321and the SMF 324. The AMF 321 may provide transport for SessionManagement (SM) messages between the UE 301 and the SMF 324, and act asa transparent proxy for routing SM messages. AMF 321 may also providetransport for short message service (SMS) messages between UE 301 and anSMS function (SMSF) (not shown by FIG. 3). AMF 321 may act as securityanchor function (SEAF), which may include interaction with the AUSF 322and the UE 301, receipt of an intermediate key that was establishedbecause of the UE 301 authentication process. Where universal mobiletelecommunication system (UMTS) Subscriber Identify Module (USIM) basedauthentication is used, the AMF 321 may retrieve the security materialfrom the AUSF 322. AMF 321 may also include a Security ContextManagement (SCM) function, which receives a key from the SEA that ituses to derive access-network specific keys. Furthermore, AMF 321 may bea termination point of RAN CP interface, which may include or be an N2reference point between the (R)AN 310 and the AMF 321; and the AMF 321may be a termination point of NAS (N1) signalling, and perform NASciphering and integrity protection.

AMF 321 may also support NAS signalling with a UE 301 over an N3interworking-function (IWF) interface. The N3IWF may be used to provideaccess to untrusted entities. N3IWF may be a termination point for theN2 interface between the (R)AN 310 and the AMF 321 for the controlplane, and may be a termination point for the N3 reference point betweenthe (R)AN 310 and the UPF 302 for the user plane. As such, the AMF 321may handle N2 signalling from the SMF 324 and the AMF 321 for PDUsessions and QoS, encapsulate/de-encapsulate packets for IPSec and N3tunnelling, mark N3 user-plane packets in the uplink, and enforce QoScorresponding to N3 packet marking taking into account QoS requirementsassociated to such marking received over N2. N3IWF may also relay uplinkand downlink control-plane NAS signalling between the UE 301 and AMF 321via an N1 reference point between the UE 301 and the AMF 321, and relayuplink and downlink user-plane packets between the UE 301 and UPF 302.The N3IWF also provides mechanisms for IPsec tunnel establishment withthe UE 301. The AMF 321 may exhibit an Namf service-based interface, andmay be a termination point for an N14 reference point between two AMFs321 and an N17 reference point between the AMF 321 and a 5G-EquipmentIdentity Register (5G-EIR) (not shown by FIG. 3).

The UE 301 may need to register with the AMF 321 in order to receivenetwork services. Registration Management (RM) is used to register orderegister the UE 301 with the network (e.g., AMF 321), and establish aUE context in the network (e.g., AMF 321). The UE 301 may operate in anRM-REGISTERED state or an RM-DEREGISTERED state. In the RM-DEREGISTEREDstate, the UE 301 is not registered with the network, and the UE contextin AMF 321 holds no valid location or routing information for the UE 301so the UE 301 is not reachable by the AMF 321. In the RM-REGISTEREDstate, the UE 301 is registered with the network, and the UE context inAMF 321 may hold a valid location or routing information for the UE 301so the UE 301 is reachable by the AMF 321. In the RM-REGISTERED state,the UE 301 may perform mobility Registration Update procedures, performperiodic Registration Update procedures triggered by expiration of theperiodic update timer (e.g., to notify the network that the UE 301 isstill active), and perform a Registration Update procedure to update UEcapability information or to re-negotiate protocol parameters with thenetwork, among others.

The AMF 321 may store one or more RM contexts for the UE 301, where eachRM context is associated with a specific access to the network. The RMcontext may be a data structure, database object, etc. that indicates orstores, inter alia, a registration state per access type and theperiodic update timer. The AMF 321 may also store a 5GC MM context thatmay be the same as or similar to the (E)MM context discussed previously.In various embodiments, the AMF 321 may store a CE mode B Restrictionparameter of the UE 301 in an associated MM context or RM context. TheAMF 321 may also derive the value, when needed, from the UE's usagesetting parameter {possible values: “Data Centric,” “Voice Centric”}already stored in the UE context (and/or MM/RM Context).

Connection Management (CM) may be used to establish and release asignaling connection between the UE 301 and the AMF 321 over the N1interface. The signaling connection is used to enable NAS signalingexchange between the UE 301 and the CN 120, and comprises both the ANsignaling connection between the UE and the Access Network (AN) (e.g.,radio resource control (RRC) connection or UE-N3IWF connection forNon-3GPP access) and the N2 connection for the UE 301 between the AN(e.g., RAN 310) and the AMF 321. The UE 301 may operate in one of two CMstates, CM-IDLE mode or CM-CONNECTED mode. When the UE 301 is operatingin the CM-IDLE state/mode, the UE 301 may have no NAS signalingconnection established with the AMF 321 over the N1 interface, and theremay be (R)AN 310 signaling connection (e.g., N2 and/or N3 connections)for the UE 301. When the UE 301 is operating in the CM-CONNECTEDstate/mode, the UE 301 may have an established NAS signaling connectionwith the AMF 321 over the N1 interface, and there may be a (R)AN 310signaling connection (e.g., N2 and/or N3 connections) for the UE 301.Establishment of an N2 connection between the (R)AN 310 and the AMF 321may cause the UE 301 to transition from CM-IDLE mode to CM-CONNECTEDmode, and the UE 301 may transition from the CM-CONNECTED mode to theCM-IDLE mode when N2 signaling between the (R)AN 310 and the AMF 321 isreleased.

The SMF 324 may be responsible for session management (e.g., sessionestablishment, modify and release, including tunnel maintain between UPFand AN node); UE IP address allocation and management (includingoptional authorization); selection and control of UP function;configuring traffic steering at UPF to route traffic to properdestination; termination of interfaces towards policy control functions;controlling part of policy enforcement and QoS; lawful interception (LI)(for SM events and interface to a LI system); termination of SM parts ofNAS messages; downlink data notification; initiation of AN specific SMinformation, sent via AMF over N2 to AN; and determining session andservice continuity (SSC) mode of a session. The SMF 324 may include thefollowing roaming functionality: handle local enforcement to apply QoSservive level agreements (SLAs) (VPLMN); charging data collection andcharging interface (VPLMN); lawful intercept (in VPLMN for SM events andinterface to LI system); support for interaction with external DN fortransport of signalling for PDU session authorization/authentication byexternal DN. An N16 reference point between two SMFs 324 may be includedin the system 300, which may be between another SMF 324 in a visitednetwork and the SMF 324 in the home network in roaming scenarios.Additionally, the SMF 324 may exhibit the Nsmf service-based interface.

The NEF 323 may provide means for securely exposing the services andcapabilities provided by 3GPP network functions for third party,internal exposure/re-exposure, Application Functions (e.g., AF 328),edge computing or fog computing systems, etc. In such embodiments, theNEF 323 may authenticate, authorize, and/or throttle the AFs. NEF 323may also translate information exchanged with the AF 328 and informationexchanged with internal network functions. For example, the NEF 323 maytranslate between an AF-Service-Identifier and an internal 5GCinformation. NEF 323 may also receive information from other networkfunctions (NFs) based on exposed capabilities of other networkfunctions. This information may be stored at the NEF 323 as structureddata, or at a data storage NF using a standardized interface. The storedinformation can then be re-exposed by the NEF 323 to other NFs and AFs,and/or used for other purposes such as analytics. Additionally, the NEF323 may exhibit an Nnef service-based interface.

The NRF 325 may support service discovery functions, receive NFDiscovery Requests from NF instances, and provide the information of thediscovered NF instances to the NF instances. NRF 325 also maintainsinformation of available NF instances and their supported services. Asused herein, the terms “instantiate,” “instantiation,” and the like mayrefer to the creation of an instance, and an “instance” may refer to aconcrete occurrence of an object, which may occur, for example, duringexecution of program code. Additionally, the NRF 325 may exhibit theNnrf service-based interface.

The PCF 326 may provide policy rules to control plane function(s) toenforce them, and may also support unified policy framework to governnetwork behavior. The PCF 326 may also implement a front end (FE) toaccess subscription information relevant for policy decisions in aunified data repository (UDR) of the UDM 327. The PCF 326 maycommunicate with the AMF 321 via an N15 reference point between the PCF326 and the AMF 321, which may include a PCF 326 in a visited networkand the AMF 321 in case of roaming scenarios. The PCF 326 maycommunicate with the AF 328 via an N5 reference point between the PCF326 and the AF 328; and with the SMF 324 via an N7 reference pointbetween the PCF 326 and the SMF 324. The system 200 and/or CN 120 mayalso include an N24 reference point between the PCF 326 (in the homenetwork) and a PCF 326 in a visited network. Additionally, the PCF 326may exhibit an Npcf service-based interface.

The UDM 327 may handle subscription-related information to support thenetwork entities' handling of communication sessions, and may storesubscription data of UE 301. For example, subscription data may becommunicated between the UDM 327 and the AMF 321 via an N8 referencepoint between the UDM 327 and the AMF 321 (not shown by FIG. 3). The UDM327 may include two parts, an application FE and a User Data Repository(UDR) (the FE and UDR are not shown by FIG. 3). The UDR may storesubscription data and policy data for the UDM 327 and the PCF 326,and/or structured data for exposure and application data (includingPacket Flow Descriptions (PFDs) for application detection, applicationrequest information for multiple UEs 201) for the NEF 323. The Nudrservice-based interface may be exhibited by the UDR to allow the UDM327, PCF 326, and NEF 323 to access a particular set of the stored data,as well as to read, update (e.g., add, modify), delete, and subscribe tonotification of relevant data changes in the UDR. The UDM may include aUDM FE, which is in charge of processing of credentials, locationmanagement, subscription management and so on. Several different frontends may serve the same user in different transactions. The UDM-FEaccesses subscription information stored in the UDR and performsauthentication credential processing; user identification handling;access authorization; registration/mobility management; and subscriptionmanagement. The UDR may interact with the SMF 324 via an N10 referencepoint between the UDM 327 and the SMF 324. UDM 327 may also support SMSmanagement, wherein an SMS-FE implements the similar application logicas discussed previously. Additionally, the UDM 327 may exhibit the Nudmservice-based interface.

The AF 328 may provide application influence on traffic routing, accessto the Network Capability Exposure (NCE), and interact with the policyframework for policy control. The NCE may be a mechanism that allows the5GC 320 and AF 328 to provide information to each other via NEF 323,which may be used for edge computing implementations. In suchimplementations, the network operator and third party services may behosted close to the UE 301 access point of attachment to achieve anefficient service delivery through the reduced end-to-end latency andload on the transport network. For edge computing implementations, the5GC may select a UPF 302 close to the UE 301 and execute trafficsteering from the UPF 302 to DN 303 via the N6 interface. This may bebased on the UE subscription data, UE location, and information providedby the AF 328. In this way, the AF 328 may influence UPF (re)selectionand traffic routing. Based on operator deployment, when AF 328 isconsidered to be a trusted entity, the network operator may permit AF328 to interact directly with relevant NFs. Additionally, the AF 328 mayexhibit an Naf service-based interface.

The NSSF 329 may select a set of network slice instances serving the UE301. The NSSF 329 may also determine allowed Network Slice SelectionAssistance Information (NSSAI) and the mapping to the SubscribedSingle-NSSAIs (S-NSSAIs), if needed. The NSSF 329 may also determine theAMF set to be used to serve the UE 301, or a list of candidate AMF(s)321 based on a suitable configuration and possibly by querying the NRF325. The selection of a set of network slice instances for the UE 301may be triggered by the AMF 321 with which the UE 301 is registered byinteracting with the NSSF 329, which may lead to a change of AMF 321.The NSSF 329 may interact with the AMF 321 via an N22 reference pointbetween AMF 321 and NSSF 329; and may communicate with another NSSF 329in a visited network via an N31 reference point (not shown by FIG. 3).Additionally, the NSSF 329 may exhibit an Nnssf service-based interface.

As discussed previously, the CN 320 may include an SMSF, which may beresponsible for SMS subscription checking and verification, and relayingSM messages to/from the UE 301 to/from other entities, such as an shortmessage service (SMS) gateway mobile switching center (SMS-GMSC),interworking mobile switching center (IWMSC), or SMS router. The SMS mayalso interact with AMF 321 and UDM 327 for notification procedure thatthe UE 301 is available for SMS transfer (e.g., set a UE not reachableflag, and notifying UDM 327 when UE 301 is available for SMS).

The CN 120 may also include other elements that are not shown by FIG. 3,such as a Data Storage system/architecture, a 5G Equipment IdentityRegister (5G-EIR), a security edge protection proxy (SEPP), and thelike. The Data Storage system may include a structured data storage(SDSF) network function, an unstructured data storage (UDSF) networkfunction, and/or the like. Any NF may store and retrieve unstructureddata into/from the UDSF (e.g., UE contexts), via N18 reference pointbetween any NF and the UDSF (not shown by FIG. 3). Individual NFs mayshare a UDSF for storing their respective unstructured data, orindividual NFs may each have their own UDSF located at or near theindividual NFs. Additionally, the UDSF may exhibit an Nudsfservice-based interface (not shown by FIG. 3). The 5G-EIR may be an NFthat checks the status of permanent equipment identifiers (PEI) fordetermining whether particular equipment/entities are blacklisted fromthe network; and the SEPP may be a non-transparent proxy that performstopology hiding, message filtering, and policing on inter-PLMN controlplane interfaces.

Additionally, there may be many more reference points and/orservice-based interfaces between the NF services in the NFs; however,these interfaces and reference points have been omitted from FIG. 3 forclarity. In one example, the CN 320 may include an Nx interface, whichis an inter-CN interface between the MME (e.g., MME 221) and the AMF 321in order to enable interworking between CN 320 and CN 220. Other exampleinterfaces/reference points may include an N5G-EIR service-basedinterface exhibited by a 5G-EIR, an N27 reference point between NRF inthe visited network and the NRF in the home network; and an N31reference point between the NSSF in the visited network and the NSSF inthe home network.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example of infrastructure equipment 400 inaccordance with various embodiments. The infrastructure equipment 400(or “system 400”) may be implemented as a base station, radio head, RANnode, etc., such as the RAN nodes 111 and/or AP 106 shown and describedpreviously. In other examples, the system 400 could be implemented in orby a UE, application server(s) 130, and/or any other element/devicediscussed herein. The system 400 may include one or more of applicationcircuitry 405, baseband circuitry 410, one or more radio front endmodules 415, memory circuitry 420, power management integrated circuitry(PMIC) 425, power tee circuitry 430, network controller circuitry 435,network interface connector 440, satellite positioning circuitry 445,and user interface circuitry 450. In some embodiments, the system 400may include additional elements such as, for example, memory/storage,display, camera, sensor, or input/output (I/O) interface. In otherembodiments, the components described below may be included in more thanone device (e.g., said circuitries may be separately included in morethan one device for Cloud-RAN (C-RAN) implementations).

As used herein, the term “circuitry” may refer to, is part of, orincludes hardware components such as an electronic circuit, a logiccircuit, a processor (shared, dedicated, or group) and/or memory(shared, dedicated, or group), an Application Specific IntegratedCircuit (ASIC), a field-programmable device (FPD), (e.g., afield-programmable gate array (FPGA), a programmable logic device (PLD),a complex PLD (CPLD), a high-capacity PLD (HCPLD), a structured ASIC, ora programmable System on Chip (SoC)), digital signal processors (DSPs),etc., that are configured to provide the described functionality. Insome embodiments, the circuitry may execute one or more software orfirmware programs to provide at least some of the describedfunctionality. In addition, the term “circuitry” may also refer to acombination of one or more hardware elements (or a combination ofcircuits used in an electrical or electronic system) with the programcode used to carry out the functionality of that program code. In theseembodiments, the combination of hardware elements and program code maybe referred to as a particular type of circuitry.

The terms “application circuitry” and/or “baseband circuitry” may beconsidered synonymous to, and may be referred to as, “processorcircuitry.” As used herein, the term “processor circuitry” may refer to,is part of, or includes circuitry capable of sequentially andautomatically carrying out a sequence of arithmetic or logicaloperations; recording, storing, and/or transferring digital data. Theterm “processor circuitry” may refer to one or more applicationprocessors, one or more baseband processors, a physical centralprocessing unit (CPU), a single-core processor, a dual-core processor, atriple-core processor, a quad-core processor, and/or any other devicecapable of executing or otherwise operating computer-executableinstructions, such as program code, software modules, and/or functionalprocesses.

Furthermore, the various components of the core network 120 (or CN 320discussed infra) may be referred to as “network elements.” The term“network element” may describe a physical or virtualized equipment usedto provide wired or wireless communication network services. The term“network element” may be considered synonymous to and/or referred to asa networked computer, networking hardware, network equipment, networknode, router, switch, hub, bridge, radio network controller, radioaccess network device, gateway, server, virtualized network function(VNF), network functions virtualization infrastructure (NFVI), and/orthe like.

Application circuitry 405 may include one or more central processingunit (CPU) cores and one or more of cache memory, low drop-out voltageregulators (LDOs), interrupt controllers, serial interfaces such asserial peripheral interface (SPI), I2C or universal programmable serialinterface module, real time clock (RTC), timer-counters includinginterval and watchdog timers, general purpose input/output (I/O or IO),memory card controllers such as Secure Digital (SD)/MultiMediaCard (MMC)or similar, Universal Serial Bus (USB) interfaces, Mobile IndustryProcessor Interface (MIPI) interfaces and Joint Test Access Group (JTAG)test access ports. As examples, the application circuitry 405 mayinclude one or more Intel Pentium®, Core®, or Xeon® processor(s);Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) Ryzen® processor(s), Accelerated ProcessingUnits (APUs), or Epyc® processors; and/or the like. In some embodiments,the system 400 may not utilize application circuitry 405, and insteadmay include a special-purpose processor/controller to process IP datareceived from an EPC or 5GC, for example.

Additionally or alternatively, application circuitry 405 may includecircuitry such as, but not limited to, one or more field-programmabledevices (FPDs) such as field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) and thelike; programmable logic devices (PLDs) such as complex PLDs (CPLDs),high-capacity PLDs (HCPLDs), and the like; ASICs such as structuredASICs and the like; programmable SoCs (PSoCs); and the like. In suchembodiments, the circuitry of application circuitry 405 may compriselogic blocks or logic fabric including other interconnected resourcesthat may be programmed to perform various functions, such as theprocedures, methods, functions, etc. of the various embodimentsdiscussed herein. In such embodiments, the circuitry of applicationcircuitry 405 may include memory cells (e.g., erasable programmableread-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-onlymemory (EEPROM), flash memory, static memory (e.g., static random accessmemory (SRAM), anti-fuses, etc.) used to store logic blocks, logicfabric, data, etc. in lookup-tables (LUTs) and the like.

The baseband circuitry 410 may be implemented, for example, as asolder-down substrate including one or more integrated circuits, asingle packaged integrated circuit soldered to a main circuit board or amulti-chip module containing two or more integrated circuits. Althoughnot shown, baseband circuitry 410 may comprise one or more digitalbaseband systems, which may be coupled via an interconnect subsystem toa CPU subsystem, an audio subsystem, and an interface subsystem. Thedigital baseband subsystems may also be coupled to a digital basebandinterface and a mixed-signal baseband sub-system via anotherinterconnect subsystem. Each of the interconnect subsystems may includea bus system, point-to-point connections, network-on-chip (NOC)structures, and/or some other suitable bus or interconnect technology,such as those discussed herein. The audio sub-system may include digitalsignal processing circuitry, buffer memory, program memory, speechprocessing accelerator circuitry, data converter circuitry such asanalog-to-digital and digital-to-analog converter circuitry, analogcircuitry including one or more of amplifiers and filters, and/or otherlike components. In an aspect of the present disclosure, basebandcircuitry 410 may include protocol processing circuitry with one or moreinstances of control circuitry (not shown) to provide control functionsfor the digital baseband circuitry and/or radio frequency circuitry(e.g., the radio front end modules 415).

User interface circuitry 450 may include one or more user interfacesdesigned to enable user interaction with the system 400 or peripheralcomponent interfaces designed to enable peripheral component interactionwith the system 400. User interfaces may include, but are not limitedto, one or more physical or virtual buttons (e.g., a reset button), oneor more indicators (e.g., light emitting diodes (LEDs)), a physicalkeyboard or keypad, a mouse, a touchpad, a touchscreen, speakers orother audio emitting devices, microphones, a printer, a scanner, aheadset, a display screen or display device, etc. Peripheral componentinterfaces may include, but are not limited to, a non-volatile memoryport, a universal serial bus (USB) port, an audio jack, a power supplyinterface, etc.

The radio front end modules (RFEMs) 415 may comprise a millimeter waveRFEM and one or more sub-millimeter wave radio frequency integratedcircuits (RFICs). In some implementations, the one or moresub-millimeter wave RFICs may be physically separated from themillimeter wave RFEM. The RFICs may include connections to one or moreantennas or antenna arrays, and the RFEM may be connected to multipleantennas. In alternative implementations, both millimeter wave andsub-millimeter wave radio functions may be implemented in the samephysical radio front end module 415. The RFEMs 415 may incorporate bothmillimeter wave antennas and sub-millimeter wave antennas.

The memory circuitry 420 may include one or more of volatile memoryincluding dynamic random access memory (DRAM) and/or synchronous dynamicrandom access memory (SDRAM), and nonvolatile memory (NVM) includinghigh-speed electrically erasable memory (commonly referred to as Flashmemory), phase change random access memory (PRAM), magnetoresistiverandom access memory (MRAM), etc., and may incorporate thethree-dimensional (3D) cross-point (XPOINT) memories from Intel® andMicron®. Memory circuitry 420 may be implemented as one or more ofsolder down packaged integrated circuits, socketed memory modules andplug-in memory cards.

The PMIC 425 may include voltage regulators, surge protectors, poweralarm detection circuitry, and one or more backup power sources such asa battery or capacitor. The power alarm detection circuitry may detectone or more of brown out (under-voltage) and surge (over-voltage)conditions. The power tee circuitry 430 may provide for electrical powerdrawn from a network cable to provide both power supply and dataconnectivity to the infrastructure equipment 400 using a single cable.

The network controller circuitry 435 may provide connectivity to anetwork using a standard network interface protocol such as Ethernet,Ethernet over GRE Tunnels, Ethernet over Multiprotocol Label Switching(MPLS), or some other suitable protocol. Network connectivity may beprovided to/from the infrastructure equipment 400 via network interfaceconnector 440 using a physical connection, which may be electrical(commonly referred to as a “copper interconnect”), optical, or wireless.The network controller circuitry 435 may include one or more dedicatedprocessors and/or FPGAs to communicate using one or more of theaforementioned protocol. In some implementations, the network controllercircuitry 435 may include multiple controllers to provide connectivityto other networks using the same or different protocols.

The positioning circuitry 445 may include circuitry to receive anddecode signals transmitted by one or more navigation satelliteconstellations of a global navigation satellite system (GNSS). Examplesof navigation satellite constellations (or GNSS) may include UnitedStates' Global Positioning System (GPS), Russia's Global NavigationSystem (GLONASS), the European Union's Galileo system, China's BeiDouNavigation Satellite System, a regional navigation system or GNSSaugmentation system (e.g., Navigation with Indian Constellation (NAVIC),Japan's Quasi-Zenith Satellite System (QZSS), France's DopplerOrbitography and Radio-positioning Integrated by Satellite (DORIS),etc.), or the like. The positioning circuitry 445 may comprise varioushardware elements (e.g., including hardware devices such as switches,filters, amplifiers, antenna elements, and the like to facilitate thecommunications over-the-air (OTA) communications) to communicate withcomponents of a positioning network, such as navigation satelliteconstellation nodes.

Nodes or satellites of the navigation satellite constellation(s) (“GNSSnodes”) may provide positioning services by continuously transmitting orbroadcasting GNSS signals along a line of sight, which may be used byGNSS receivers (e.g., positioning circuitry 445 and/or positioningcircuitry implemented by UEs 101, 102, or the like) to determine theirGNSS position. The GNSS signals may include a pseudorandom code (e.g., asequence of ones and zeros) that is known to the GNSS receiver and amessage that includes a time of transmission (ToT) of a code epoch(e.g., a defined point in the pseudorandom code sequence) and the GNSSnode position at the ToT. The GNSS receivers may monitor/measure theGNSS signals transmitted/broadcasted by a plurality of GNSS nodes (e.g.,four or more satellites) and solve various equations to determine acorresponding GNSS position (e.g., a spatial coordinate). The GNSSreceivers also implement clocks that are typically less stable and lessprecise than the atomic clocks of the GNSS nodes, and the GNSS receiversmay use the measured GNSS signals to determine the GNSS receivers'deviation from true time (e.g., an offset of the GNSS receiver clockrelative to the GNSS node time). In some embodiments, the positioningcircuitry 445 may include a Micro-Technology for Positioning,Navigation, and Timing (Micro-PNT) IC that uses a master timing clock toperform position tracking/estimation without GNSS assistance.

The GNSS receivers may measure the times of arrival (ToAs) of the GNSSsignals from the plurality of GNSS nodes according to GNSS receivers'own clock. The GNSS receivers may determine time of flight (ToF) valuesfor each received GNSS signal from the ToAs and the ToTs, and then maydetermine, from the ToFs, a three-dimensional (3D) position and clockdeviation. The 3D position may then be converted into a latitude,longitude and altitude. The positioning circuitry 445 may provide datato application circuitry 405 that may include one or more of positiondata or time data. Application circuitry 405 may use the time data tosynchronize operations with other radio base stations (e.g., RAN nodes111 or the like).

The components shown by FIG. 4 may communicate with one another usinginterface circuitry. As used herein, the term “interface circuitry” mayrefer to, is part of, or includes circuitry providing for the exchangeof information between two or more components or devices. The term“interface circuitry” may refer to one or more hardware interfaces, forexample, buses, input/output (I/O) interfaces, peripheral componentinterfaces, network interface cards, and/or the like. Any suitable bustechnology may be used in various implementations, which may include anynumber of technologies, including industry standard architecture (ISA),extended ISA (EISA), peripheral component interconnect (PCI), peripheralcomponent interconnect extended (PCIx), PCI express (PCIe), or anynumber of other technologies. The bus may be a proprietary bus, forexample, used in a SoC based system. Other bus systems may be included,such as an I2C interface, an SPI interface, point to point interfaces,and a power bus, among others.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example of a platform 500 (or “device 500”) inaccordance with various embodiments. In embodiments, the computerplatform 500 may be suitable for use as UEs 101, 102, 201, applicationservers 130, and/or any other element/device discussed herein. Theplatform 500 may include any combinations of the components shown in theexample. The components of platform 500 may be implemented as integratedcircuits (ICs), portions thereof, discrete electronic devices, or othermodules, logic, hardware, software, firmware, or a combination thereofadapted in the computer platform 500, or as components otherwiseincorporated within a chassis of a larger system. The block diagram ofFIG. 5 is intended to show a high level view of components of thecomputer platform 500. However, some of the components shown may beomitted, additional components may be present, and a differentarrangement of the components shown may occur in other implementations.

The application circuitry 505 may include circuitry such as, but notlimited to, single-core or multi-core processors and one or more ofcache memory, low drop-out voltage regulators (LDOs), interruptcontrollers, serial interfaces such as serial peripheral interface(SPI), inter-integrated circuit (I2C) or universal programmable serialinterface circuit, real time clock (RTC), timer-counters includinginterval and watchdog timers, general purpose input-output (TO), memorycard controllers such as secure digital/multi-media card (SD/MMC) orsimilar, universal serial bus (USB) interfaces, mobile industryprocessor interface (MIPI) interfaces and Joint Test Access Group (JTAG)test access ports. The processor(s) may include any combination ofgeneral-purpose processors and/or dedicated processors (e.g., graphicsprocessors, application processors, etc.). The processors (or cores) maybe coupled with or may include memory/storage and may be configured toexecute instructions stored in the memory/storage to enable variousapplications or operating systems to run on the platform 500. In someembodiments, processors of application circuitry 405/505 may process IPdata packets received from an EPC or 5GC.

Application circuitry 505 may be or include a microprocessor, amulti-core processor, a multithreaded processor, an ultra-low voltageprocessor, an embedded processor, or other known processing element. Inone example, the application circuitry 505 may include an Intel®Architecture Core™ based processor, such as a Quark™, an Atom™, an i3,an i5, an i7, or an microcontroller (MCU) class processor, or anothersuch processor available from Intel® Corporation, Santa Clara, Calif.The processors of the application circuitry 505 may also be one or moreof Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) Ryzen® processor(s) or AcceleratedProcessing Units (APUs); A5-A9 processor(s) from Apple® Inc.,Snapdragon™ processor(s) from Qualcomm® Technologies, Inc., TexasInstruments, Inc.® Open Multimedia Applications Platform (OMAP)™processor(s); a MIPS-based design from MIPS Technologies, Inc; anARM-based design licensed from ARM Holdings, Ltd.; or the like. In someimplementations, the application circuitry 505 may be a part of a systemon a chip (SoC) in which the application circuitry 505 and othercomponents are formed into a single integrated circuit, or a singlepackage, such as the Edison™ or Galileo™ SoC boards from Intel®Corporation.

Additionally or alternatively, application circuitry 505 may includecircuitry such as, but not limited to, one or more field-programmabledevices (FPDs) such as FPGAs and the like; programmable logic devices(PLDs) such as complex PLDs (CPLDs), high-capacity PLDs (HCPLDs), andthe like; ASICs such as structured ASICs and the like; programmable SoCs(PSoCs); and the like. In such embodiments, the circuitry of applicationcircuitry 505 may comprise logic blocks or logic fabric including otherinterconnected resources that may be programmed to perform variousfunctions, such as the procedures, methods, functions, etc. of thevarious embodiments discussed herein. In such embodiments, the circuitryof application circuitry 505 may include memory cells (e.g., erasableprogrammable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasableprogrammable read-only memory (EEPROM), flash memory, static memory(e.g., static random access memory (SRAM), anti-fuses, etc.), etc.) usedto store logic blocks, logic fabric, data, etc. in lookup-tables (LUTs)and the like.

The baseband circuitry 50 may be implemented, for example, as asolder-down substrate including one or more integrated circuits, asingle packaged integrated circuit soldered to a main circuit board or amulti-chip module containing two or more integrated circuits. Althoughnot shown, baseband circuitry 50 may comprise one or more digitalbaseband systems, which may be coupled via an interconnect subsystem toa CPU subsystem, an audio subsystem, and an interface subsystem. Thedigital baseband subsystems may also be coupled to a digital basebandinterface and a mixed-signal baseband sub-system via anotherinterconnect subsystem. Each of the interconnect subsystems may includea bus system, point-to-point connections, network-on-chip (NOC)structures, and/or some other suitable bus or interconnect technology,such as those discussed herein. The audio sub-system may include digitalsignal processing circuitry, buffer memory, program memory, speechprocessing accelerator circuitry, data converter circuitry such asanalog-to-digital and digital-to-analog converter circuitry, analogcircuitry including one or more of amplifiers and filters, and/or otherlike components. In an aspect of the present disclosure, basebandcircuitry 50 may include protocol processing circuitry with one or moreinstances of control circuitry (not shown) to provide control functionsfor the digital baseband circuitry and/or radio frequency circuitry(e.g., the radio front end modules 55).

The radio front end modules (RFEMs) 55 may comprise a millimeter waveRFEM and one or more sub-millimeter wave radio frequency integratedcircuits (RFICs). In some implementations, the one or moresub-millimeter wave RFICs may be physically separated from themillimeter wave RFEM. The RFICs may include connections to one or moreantennas or antenna arrays, and the RFEM may be connected to multipleantennas. In alternative implementations, both millimeter wave andsub-millimeter wave radio functions may be implemented in the samephysical radio front end module 55. The RFEMs 55 may incorporate bothmillimeter wave antennas and sub-millimeter wave antennas.

The memory circuitry 520 may include any number and type of memorydevices used to provide for a given amount of system memory. Asexamples, the memory circuitry 520 may include one or more of volatilememory includiNG-RANdom access memory (RAM), dynamic RAM (DRAM) and/orsynchronous dynamic RAM (SDRAM), and nonvolatile memory (NVM) includinghigh-speed electrically erasable memory (commonly referred to as Flashmemory), phase change random access memory (PRAM), magnetoresistiverandom access memory (MRAM), etc. The memory circuitry 520 may bedeveloped in accordance with a Joint Electron Devices EngineeringCouncil (JEDEC) low power double data rate (LPDDR)-based design, such asLPDDR2, LPDDR3, LPDDR4, or the like. Memory circuitry 520 may beimplemented as one or more of solder down packaged integrated circuits,single die package (SDP), dual die package (DDP) or quad die package(Q17P), socketed memory modules, dual inline memory modules (DIMMs)including microDIMMs or MiniDIMMs, and/or soldered onto a motherboardvia a ball grid array (BGA). In low power implementations, the memorycircuitry 520 may be on-die memory or registers associated with theapplication circuitry 505. To provide for persistent storage ofinformation such as data, applications, operating systems and so forth,memory circuitry 520 may include one or more mass storage devices, whichmay include, inter alia, a solid state disk drive (SSDD), hard diskdrive (HDD), a micro HDD, resistance change memories, phase changememories, holographic memories, or chemical memories, among others. Forexample, the computer platform 500 may incorporate the three-dimensional(3D) cross-point (XPOINT) memories from Intel® and Micron®.

Removable memory circuitry 523 may include devices, circuitry,enclosures/housings, ports or receptacles, etc. used to couple portabledata storage devices with the platform 500. These portable data storagedevices may be used for mass storage purposes, and may include, forexample, flash memory cards (e.g., Secure Digital (SD) cards, microSDcards, xD picture cards, and the like), and USB flash drives, opticaldiscs, external HDDs, and the like.

The platform 500 may also include interface circuitry (not shown) thatis used to connect external devices with the platform 500. The externaldevices connected to the platform 500 via the interface circuitry mayinclude sensors 521, such as accelerometers, level sensors, flowsensors, temperature sensors, pressure sensors, barometric pressuresensors, and the like. The interface circuitry may be used to connectthe platform 500 to electro-mechanical components (EMCs) 522, which mayallow platform 500 to change its state, position, and/or orientation, ormove or control a mechanism or system. The EMCs 522 may include one ormore power switches, relays including electromechanical relays (EMRs)and/or solid state relays (SSRs), actuators (e.g., valve actuators,etc.), an audible sound generator, a visual warning device, motors(e.g., DC motors, stepper motors, etc.), wheels, thrusters, propellers,claws, clamps, hooks, and/or other like electro-mechanical components.In embodiments, platform 500 may be configured to operate one or moreEMCs 522 based on one or more captured events and/or instructions orcontrol signals received from a service provider and/or various clients.

In some implementations, the interface circuitry may connect theplatform 500 with positioning circuitry 545, which may be the same as orsimilar to the positioning circuitry 445 discussed with regard to FIG.4.

In some implementations, the interface circuitry may connect theplatform 500 with near-field communication (NFC) circuitry 540, whichmay include an NFC controller coupled with an antenna element and aprocessing device. The NFC circuitry 540 may be configured to readelectronic tags and/or connect with another NFC-enabled device.

The driver circuitry 546 may include software and hardware elements thatoperate to control particular devices that are embedded in the platform500, attached to the platform 500, or otherwise communicatively coupledwith the platform 500. The driver circuitry 546 may include individualdrivers allowing other components of the platform 500 to interact orcontrol various input/output (I/O) devices that may be present within,or connected to, the platform 500. For example, driver circuitry 546 mayinclude a display driver to control and allow access to a displaydevice, a touchscreen driver to control and allow access to atouchscreen interface of the platform 500, sensor drivers to obtainsensor readings of sensors 521 and control and allow access to sensors521, EMC drivers to obtain actuator positions of the EMCs 522 and/orcontrol and allow access to the EMCs 522, a camera driver to control andallow access to an embedded image capture device, audio drivers tocontrol and allow access to one or more audio devices.

The power management integrated circuitry (PMIC) 525 (also referred toas “power management circuitry 525”) may manage power provided tovarious components of the platform 500. In particular, with respect tothe baseband circuitry 50, the PMIC 525 may control power-sourceselection, voltage scaling, battery charging, or DC-to-DC conversion.The PMIC 525 may often be included when the platform 500 is capable ofbeing powered by a battery 530, for example, when the device is includedin a UE 101, 102, 201.

In some embodiments, the PMIC 525 may control, or otherwise be part of,various power saving mechanisms of the platform 500. For example, if theplatform 500 is in an RRC_Connected state, where it is still connectedto the RAN node as it expects to receive traffic shortly, then it mayenter a state known as Discontinuous Reception Mode (DRX) after a periodof inactivity. During this state, the platform 500 may power down forbrief intervals of time and thus save power. If there is no data trafficactivity for an extended period of time, then the platform 500 maytransition off to an RRC_Idle state, where it disconnects from thenetwork and does not perform operations such as channel qualityfeedback, handover, etc. The platform 500 goes into a very low powerstate and it performs paging where again it periodically wakes up tolisten to the network and then powers down again. The platform 500 maynot receive data in this state; in order to receive data, it musttransition back to RRC_Connected state. An additional power saving modemay allow a device to be unavailable to the network for periods longerthan a paging interval (ranging from seconds to a few hours). Duringthis time, the device is totally unreachable to the network and maypower down completely. Any data sent during this time incurs a largedelay and it is assumed the delay is acceptable.

A battery 530 may power the platform 500, although in some examples theplatform 500 may be mounted or deployed in a fixed location, and mayhave a power supply coupled to an electrical grid. The battery 530 maybe a lithium ion battery, a metal-air battery, such as a zinc-airbattery, an aluminum-air battery, a lithium-air battery, and the like.In some implementations, such as in V2X applications, the battery 530may be a typical lead-acid automotive battery.

In some implementations, the battery 530 may be a “smart battery,” whichincludes or is coupled with a battery management system (BMS) or batterymonitoring integrated circuitry. The BMS may be included in the platform500 to track the state of charge (SoCh) of the battery 530. The BMS maybe used to monitor other parameters of the battery 530 to providefailure predictions, such as the state of health (SoH) and the state offunction (SoF) of the battery 530. The BMS may communicate theinformation of the battery 530 to the application circuitry 505 or othercomponents of the platform 500. The BMS may also include ananalog-to-digital (ADC) convertor that allows the application circuitry505 to directly monitor the voltage of the battery 530 or the currentflow from the battery 530. The battery parameters may be used todetermine actions that the platform 500 may perform, such astransmission frequency, network operation, sensing frequency, and thelike.

A power block, or other power supply coupled to an electrical grid, maybe coupled with the BMS to charge the battery 530. In some examples, thepower block may be replaced with a wireless power receiver to obtain thepower wirelessly, for example, through a loop antenna in the computerplatform 500. In these examples, a wireless battery charging circuit maybe included in the BMS. The specific charging circuits chosen may dependon the size of the battery 530, and thus, the current required. Thecharging may be performed using the Airfuel standard promulgated by theAirfuel Alliance, the Qi wireless charging standard promulgated by theWireless Power Consortium, or the Rezence charging standard, promulgatedby the Alliance for Wireless Power, among others.

Although not shown, the components of platform 500 may communicate withone another using a suitable bus technology, which may include anynumber of technologies, including industry standard architecture (ISA),extended ISA (EISA), peripheral component interconnect (PCI), peripheralcomponent interconnect extended (PCIx), PCI express (PCIe), aTime-Trigger Protocol (TTP) system, or a FlexRay system, or any numberof other technologies. The bus may be a proprietary bus, for example,used in a SoC based system. Other bus systems may be included, such asan I2C interface, an SPI interface, point to point interfaces, and apower bus, among others. User interface circuitry 550 may be circuitryconfigured to handle or manage user input.

FIG. 6 illustrates example components of baseband circuitry 410/50 andradio front end modules (RFEM) 415/55 in accordance with variousembodiments. As shown, the RFEM 415/55 may include radio frequency (RF)circuitry 506, front-end module (FEM) circuitry 508, one or moreantennas 510 coupled together at least as shown.

The baseband circuitry 410/50 may include circuitry such as, but notlimited to, one or more single-core or multi-core processors. Thebaseband circuitry 410/50 may include one or more baseband processors orcontrol logic to process baseband signals received from a receive signalpath of the RF circuitry 506 and to generate baseband signals for atransmit signal path of the RF circuitry 506. Baseband processingcircuitry 410/50 may interface with the application circuitry 405/505for generation and processing of the baseband signals and forcontrolling operations of the RF circuitry 506. For example, in someembodiments, the baseband circuitry 410/50 may include a thirdgeneration (3G) baseband processor 504A, a fourth generation (4G)baseband processor 504B, a fifth generation (5G) baseband processor504C, or other baseband processor(s) 504D for other existinggenerations, generations in development or to be developed in the future(e.g., second generation (2G), sixth generation (6G), etc.). Thebaseband circuitry 410/50 (e.g., one or more of baseband processors504A-D) may handle various radio control functions that enablecommunication with one or more radio networks via the RF circuitry 506.In other embodiments, some or all of the functionality of basebandprocessors 504A-D may be included in modules stored in the memory 504Gand executed via a Central Processing Unit (CPU) 504E. The radio controlfunctions may include, but are not limited to, signalmodulation/demodulation, encoding/decoding, radio frequency shifting,etc. In some embodiments, modulation/demodulation circuitry of thebaseband circuitry 410/50 may include Fast-Fourier Transform (FFT),precoding, or constellation mapping/demapping functionality. In someembodiments, encoding/decoding circuitry of the baseband circuitry410/50 may include convolution, tail-biting convolution, turbo, Viterbi,or Low Density Parity Check (LDPC) encoder/decoder functionality.Embodiments of modulation/demodulation and encoder/decoder functionalityare not limited to these examples and may include other suitablefunctionality in other embodiments.

In some embodiments, the baseband circuitry 410/50 may include one ormore audio digital signal processor(s) (DSP) 504F. The audio DSP(s) 504Fmay include elements for compression/decompression and echo cancellationand may include other suitable processing elements in other embodiments.Components of the baseband circuitry may be suitably combined in asingle chip, a single chipset, or disposed on a same circuit board insome embodiments. In some embodiments, some or all of the constituentcomponents of the baseband circuitry 410/50 and the applicationcircuitry 405/505 may be implemented together such as, for example, on asystem on a chip (SoC).

In some embodiments, the baseband circuitry 410/50 may provide forcommunication compatible with one or more radio technologies. Forexample, in some embodiments, the baseband circuitry 410/50 may supportcommunication with an evolved universal terrestrial radio access network(EUTRAN) or other wireless metropolitan area networks (WMAN), a wirelesslocal area network (WLAN), a wireless personal area network (WPAN).Embodiments in which the baseband circuitry 410/50 is configured tosupport radio communications of more than one wireless protocol may bereferred to as multi-mode baseband circuitry.

RF circuitry 506 may enable communication with wireless networks usingmodulated electromagnetic radiation through a non-solid medium. Invarious embodiments, the RF circuitry 506 may include switches, filters,amplifiers, etc. to facilitate the communication with the wirelessnetwork. RF circuitry 506 may include a receive signal path that mayinclude circuitry to down-convert RF signals received from the FEMcircuitry 508 and provide baseband signals to the baseband circuitry410/50. RF circuitry 506 may also include a transmit signal path thatmay include circuitry to up-convert baseband signals provided by thebaseband circuitry 410/50 and provide RF output signals to the FEMcircuitry 508 for transmission.

In some embodiments, the receive signal path of the RF circuitry 506 mayinclude mixer circuitry 506 a, amplifier circuitry 506 b and filtercircuitry 506 c. In some embodiments, the transmit signal path of the RFcircuitry 506 may include filter circuitry 506 c and mixer circuitry 506a. RF circuitry 506 may also include synthesizer circuitry 506 d forsynthesizing a frequency for use by the mixer circuitry 506 a of thereceive signal path and the transmit signal path. In some embodiments,the mixer circuitry 506 a of the receive signal path may be configuredto down-convert RF signals received from the FEM circuitry 508 based onthe synthesized frequency provided by synthesizer circuitry 506 d. Theamplifier circuitry 506 b may be configured to amplify thedown-converted signals and the filter circuitry 506 c may be a low-passfilter (LPF) or band-pass filter (BPF) configured to remove unwantedsignals from the down-converted signals to generate output basebandsignals. Output baseband signals may be provided to the basebandcircuitry 410/50 for further processing. In some embodiments, the outputbaseband signals may be zero-frequency baseband signals, although thisis not a requirement. In some embodiments, mixer circuitry 506 a of thereceive signal path may comprise passive mixers, although the scope ofthe embodiments is not limited in this respect.

In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry 506 a of the transmit signalpath may be configured to up-convert input baseband signals based on thesynthesized frequency provided by the synthesizer circuitry 506 d togenerate RF output signals for the FEM circuitry 508. The basebandsignals may be provided by the baseband circuitry 410/50 and may befiltered by filter circuitry 506 c.

In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry 506 a of the receive signalpath and the mixer circuitry 506 a of the transmit signal path mayinclude two or more mixers and may be arranged for quadraturedownconversion and upconversion, respectively. In some embodiments, themixer circuitry 506 a of the receive signal path and the mixer circuitry506 a of the transmit signal path may include two or more mixers and maybe arranged for image rejection (e.g., Hartley image rejection). In someembodiments, the mixer circuitry 506 a of the receive signal path andthe mixer circuitry 506 a of the transmit signal path may be arrangedfor direct downconversion and direct upconversion, respectively. In someembodiments, the mixer circuitry 506 a of the receive signal path andthe mixer circuitry 506 a of the transmit signal path may be configuredfor super-heterodyne operation.

In some embodiments, the output baseband signals and the input basebandsignals may be analog baseband signals, although the scope of theembodiments is not limited in this respect. In some alternateembodiments, the output baseband signals and the input baseband signalsmay be digital baseband signals. In these alternate embodiments, the RFcircuitry 506 may include analog-to-digital converter (ADC) anddigital-to-analog converter (DAC) circuitry and the baseband circuitry410/50 may include a digital baseband interface to communicate with theRF circuitry 506.

In some dual-mode embodiments, a separate radio IC circuitry may beprovided for processing signals for each spectrum, although the scope ofthe embodiments is not limited in this respect.

In some embodiments, the synthesizer circuitry 506 d may be afractional-N synthesizer or a fractional N/N+1 synthesizer, although thescope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect as other typesof frequency synthesizers may be suitable. For example, synthesizercircuitry 506 d may be a delta-sigma synthesizer, a frequencymultiplier, or a synthesizer comprising a phase-locked loop with afrequency divider.

The synthesizer circuitry 506 d may be configured to synthesize anoutput frequency for use by the mixer circuitry 506 a of the RFcircuitry 506 based on a frequency input and a divider control input. Insome embodiments, the synthesizer circuitry 506 d may be a fractionalN/N+1 synthesizer.

In some embodiments, frequency input may be provided by a voltagecontrolled oscillator (VCO), although that is not a requirement. Dividercontrol input may be provided by either the baseband circuitry 410/50 orthe application circuitry 405/505 depending on the desired outputfrequency. In some embodiments, a divider control input (e.g., N) may bedetermined from a look-up table based on a channel indicated by theapplication circuitry 405/505.

Synthesizer circuitry 506 d of the RF circuitry 506 may include adivider, a delay-locked loop (DLL), a multiplexer and a phaseaccumulator. In some embodiments, the divider may be a dual modulusdivider (DMD) and the phase accumulator may be a digital phaseaccumulator (DPA). In some embodiments, the DMD may be configured todivide the input signal by either N or N+1 (e.g., based on a carry out)to provide a fractional division ratio. In some example embodiments, theDLL may include a set of cascaded, tunable, delay elements, a phasedetector, a charge pump and a D-type flip-flop. In these embodiments,the delay elements may be configured to break a VCO period up into Ndequal packets of phase, where Nd is the number of delay elements in thedelay line. In this way, the DLL provides negative feedback to helpensure that the total delay through the delay line is one VCO cycle.

In some embodiments, synthesizer circuitry 506 d may be configured togenerate a carrier frequency as the output frequency, while in otherembodiments, the output frequency may be a multiple of the carrierfrequency (e.g., twice the carrier frequency, four times the carrierfrequency) and used in conjunction with quadrature generator and dividercircuitry to generate multiple signals at the carrier frequency withmultiple different phases with respect to each other. In someembodiments, the output frequency may be a LO frequency (fLO). In someembodiments, the RF circuitry 506 may include an IQ/polar converter.

FEM circuitry 508 may include a receive signal path that may includecircuitry configured to operate on RF signals received from one or moreantennas 510, amplify the received signals and provide the amplifiedversions of the received signals to the RF circuitry 506 for furtherprocessing. FEM circuitry 508 may also include a transmit signal paththat may include circuitry configured to amplify signals fortransmission provided by the RF circuitry 506 for transmission by one ormore of the one or more antennas 510. In various embodiments, theamplification through the transmit or receive signal paths may be donesolely in the RF circuitry 506, solely in the FEM 508, or in both the RFcircuitry 506 and the FEM 508.

In some embodiments, the FEM circuitry 508 may include a TX/RX switch toswitch between transmit mode and receive mode operation. The FEMcircuitry 508 may include a receive signal path and a transmit signalpath. The receive signal path of the FEM circuitry 508 may include anlow noise amplifier (LNA) to amplify received RF signals and provide theamplified received RF signals as an output (e.g., to the RF circuitry506). The transmit signal path of the FEM circuitry 508 may include apower amplifier (PA) to amplify input RF signals (e.g., provided by RFcircuitry 506), and one or more filters to generate RF signals forsubsequent transmission (e.g., by one or more of the one or moreantennas 510).

Processors of the application circuitry 405/505 and processors of thebaseband circuitry 410/50 may be used to execute elements of one or moreinstances of a protocol stack. For example, processors of the basebandcircuitry 410/50, alone or in combination, may be used execute Layer 3,Layer 2, or Layer 1 functionality, while processors of the basebandcircuitry 410/50 may utilize data (e.g., packet data) received fromthese layers and further execute Layer 4 functionality (e.g.,transmission communication protocol (TCP) and user datagram protocol(UDP) layers). As referred to herein, Layer 3 may comprise a radioresource control (RRC) layer, described in further detail below. Asreferred to herein, Layer 2 may comprise a medium access control (MAC)layer, a radio link control (RLC) layer, and a packet data convergenceprotocol (PDCP) layer, described in further detail below. As referred toherein, Layer 1 may comprise a physical (PHY) layer of a UE/RAN node,described in further detail below.

FIG. 7 illustrates example interfaces of baseband circuitry inaccordance with various embodiments. As discussed above, the basebandcircuitry 410/50 of FIGS. 4-5 may comprise processors 504A-504E and amemory 504G utilized by said processors. Each of the processors504A-504E may include a memory interface, 704A-704E, respectively, tosend/receive data to/from the memory 504G.

The baseband circuitry 410/50 may further include one or more interfacesto communicatively couple to other circuitries/devices, such as a memoryinterface 712 (e.g., an interface to send/receive data to/from memoryexternal to the baseband circuitry 410/50), an application circuitryinterface 714 (e.g., an interface to send/receive data to/from theapplication circuitry 405/505 of FIGS. 4-5), an RF circuitry interface716 (e.g., an interface to send/receive data to/from RF circuitry 506 ofFIG. 6), a wireless hardware connectivity interface 718 (e.g., aninterface to send/receive data to/from Near Field Communication (NFC)components, Bluetooth® components (e.g., Bluetooth® Low Energy), Wi-Fi®components, and other communication components), and a power managementinterface 720 (e.g., an interface to send/receive power or controlsignals to/from the PMIC 525.

FIG. 8 illustrates various protocol functions that may be implemented ina wireless communication device according to various embodiments. Inparticular, FIG. 8 includes an arrangement 800 showing interconnectionsbetween various protocol layers/entities. The following description ofFIG. 8 is provided for various protocol layers/entities that operate inconjunction with the Fifth Generation (5G) or New Radio (NR) systemstandards and LTE system standards, but some or all of the aspects ofFIG. 8 may be applicable to other wireless communication network systemsas well.

The protocol layers of arrangement 800 may include one or more of aphysical layer (PHY) 810, a medium access control layer (MAC) 820, aradio link control layer (RLC) 830, a packet data convergence protocollayer (PDCP) 840, a service data adaptation protocol layer (SDAP) 847, aradio resource control layer (RRC) 855, and a non-access stratum (NAS)layer 857, in addition to other higher layer functions not illustrated.The protocol layers may include one or more service access points (e.g.,items 859, 856, 849, 845, 835, 825, and 815 in FIG. 8) that may providecommunication between two or more protocol layers.

The PHY 810 may transmit and receive physical layer signals 805 that maybe received from or transmitted to one or more other communicationdevices. The physical layer signals 805 may comprise one or morephysical channels, such as those discussed herein. The PHY 810 mayfurther perform link adaptation or adaptive modulation and coding (AMC),power control, cell search (e.g., for initial synchronization andhandover purposes), and other measurements used by higher layers, suchas the RRC 855. The PHY 810 may still further perform error detection onthe transport channels, forward error correction (FEC) coding/decodingof the transport channels, modulation/demodulation of physical channels,interleaving, rate matching, mapping onto physical channels, andMultiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) antenna processing. Inembodiments, an instance of PHY 810 may process requests from andprovide indications to an instance of MAC 820 via one or more physicallayer service access points (PHY-SAP) 815. According to someembodiments, requests and indications communicated via PHY-SAP 815 maycomprise one or more transport channels.

Instance(s) of MAC 820 may process requests from, and provideindications to an instance of, RLC 830 via one or more medium accesscontrol service access points (MAC-SAP) 825. These requests andindications communicated via the MAC-SAP 825 may comprise one or morelogical channels. The MAC 820 may perform mapping between the logicalchannels and transport channels, multiplexing of MAC SDUs from one ormore logical channels onto transport blocks (TB) to be delivered to PHY810 via the transport channels, de-multiplexing MAC SDUs to one or morelogical channels from TBs delivered from the PHY 810 via transportchannels, multiplexing MAC SDUs onto TBs, scheduling informationreporting, error correction through hybrid automatic repeat request(HARD), and logical channel prioritization.

Instance(s) of RLC 830 may process requests from and provide indicationsto an instance of PDCP 840 via one or more radio link control serviceaccess points (RLC-SAP) 835. These requests and indications communicatedvia RLC-SAP 835 may comprise one or more RLC channels. The RLC 830 mayoperate in a plurality of modes of operation, including: TransparentMode (TM), Unacknowledged Mode (UM), and Acknowledged Mode (AM). The RLC830 may execute transfer of upper layer protocol data units (PDUs),error correction through automatic repeat request (ARQ) for AM datatransfers, and concatenation, segmentation and reassembly of RLC SDUsfor UM and AM data transfers. The RLC 830 may also executere-segmentation of RLC data PDUs for AM data transfers, reorder RLC dataPDUs for UM and AM data transfers, detect duplicate data for UM and AMdata transfers, discard RLC SDUs for UM and AM data transfers, detectprotocol errors for AM data transfers, and perform RLC re-establishment.

Instance(s) of PDCP 840 may process requests from and provideindications to instance(s) of RRC 855 and/or instance(s) of SDAP 847 viaone or more packet data convergence protocol service access points(PDCP-SAP) 845. These requests and indications communicated via PDCP-SAP845 may comprise one or more radio bearers. The PDCP layer 840 mayexecute header compression and decompression of IP data, maintain PDCPSequence Numbers (SNs), perform in-sequence delivery of upper layer PDUsat re-establishment of lower layers, eliminate duplicates of lower layerSDUs at re-establishment of lower layers for radio bearers mapped on RLCAM, cipher and decipher control plane data, perform integrity protectionand integrity verification of control plane data, control timer-baseddiscard of data, and perform security operations (e.g., ciphering,deciphering, integrity protection, integrity verification, etc.).

Instance(s) of SDAP 847 may process requests from and provideindications to one or more higher layer protocol entities via one ormore service data adaptation protocol service access points (SDAP-SAP)849. These requests and indications communicated via SDAP-SAP 849 maycomprise one or more quality of service (QoS) flows. The SDAP 847 maymap QoS flows to data radio bearers (DRBs), and vice versa, and may alsomark QoS flow IDs (QFIs) in DL and UL packets. A single SDAP entity 847may be configured for an individual PDU session. In the UL direction,the CN 120, which may be a next generation RAN (NG-RAN), may control themapping of QoS flows to DRB(s) in two different ways, reflective mappingor explicit mapping. For reflective mapping, the SDAP 847 of a UE 101may monitor the QoS flow ID(s) of the DL packets for each DRB, and mayapply the same mapping for packets flowing in the UL direction. For aDRB, the SDAP 847 of the UE 101 may map the UL packets belonging to theQoS flows(s) corresponding to the QoS flow ID(s) and PDU sessionobserved in the DL packets for that DRB. To enable reflective mapping,the NG-RAN 310 may mark DL packets over the Uu interface with a QoS flowID. The explicit mapping may involve the RRC 855 configuring the SDAP847 with an explicit QoS flow to DRB mapping rule, which may be storedand followed by the SDAP 847. In embodiments, the SDAP 847 may only beused in NR implementations and may not be used in LTE implementations.

The RRC 855 may configure, via one or more management service accesspoints (M-SAP), aspects of one or more protocol layers, which mayinclude one or more instances of PHY 810, MAC 820, RLC 830, PDCP 840 andSDAP 847. In embodiments, an instance of RRC 855 may process requestsfrom and provide indications to one or more NAS entities 857 via one ormore RRC service access points (RRC-SAP) 856. The main services andfunctions of the RRC 855 may include broadcast of system information(e.g., included in Master Information Blocks (MIBs) or SystemInformation Blocks (SIBs) related to the NAS), broadcast of systeminformation related to the access stratum (AS), paging, establishment,maintenance and release of an RRC connection between the UE 101 and RAN120 (e.g., RRC connection paging, RRC connection establishment, RRCconnection modification, and RRC connection release), establishment,configuration, maintenance and release of point to point radio bearers,security functions including key management, inter radio accesstechnology (RAT) mobility, and measurement configuration for UEmeasurement reporting. The MIBs and SIBs may comprise one or moreinformation elements (IEs), which may each comprise individual datafields or data structures.

The NAS 857 may form the highest stratum of the control plane betweenthe UE 101 and the AMF 321. The NAS 857 may support the mobility of theUEs 101 and the session management procedures to establish and maintainIP connectivity between the UE 101 and a P-GW in LTE systems.

According to various embodiments, one or more protocol entities ofarrangement 800 may be implemented in UEs 101, RAN nodes 111, AMF 321 inNR implementations or MME 221 in LTE implementations, UPF 302 in NRimplementations or S-GW 222 and P-GW 223 in LTE implementations, or thelike to be used for control plane or user plane communications protocolstack between the aforementioned devices. In such embodiments, one ormore protocol entities that may be implemented in one or more of UE 101,RAN 111 (which may be a next generation NodeB (gNB)), AMF 321, etc. maycommunicate with a respective peer protocol entity that may beimplemented in or on another device using the services of respectivelower layer protocol entities to perform such communication. In someembodiments, a gNB-central unit (gNB-CU) of the gNB 111 may host the RRC855, SDAP 847, and PDCP 840 of the gNB that controls the operation ofone or more gNB-distributed units (DUs), and the gNB-DUs of the gNB 111may each host the RLC 830, MAC 820, and PHY 810 of the gNB 111.

In a first example, a control plane protocol stack may comprise, inorder from highest layer to lowest layer, NAS 857, RRC 855, PDCP 840,RLC 830, MAC 820, and PHY 810. In this example, upper layers 860 may bebuilt on top of the NAS 857, which includes an internet protocol layer(IP) 861, a Stream Control Transmission Protocol layer (SCTP) 862, andan application layer signaling protocol (AP) 863.

In NR implementations, the AP 863 may be an NG application protocollayer (NGAP or NG-AP) 863 for the NG interface 113 defined between theNG-RAN node 111 and the AMF 321, or the AP 863 may be an Xn applicationprotocol layer (XnAP or Xn-AP) 863 for the Xn interface 112 that isdefined between two or more RAN nodes 111.

The NG-AP 863 may support the functions of the NG interface 113 and maycomprise Elementary Procedures (EPs). An NG-AP EP may be a unit ofinteraction between the NG-RAN node 111 and the AMF 321. The NG-AP 863services may comprise two groups: UE-associated services (e.g., servicesrelated to a UE 101, 102) and non-UE-associated services (e.g., servicesrelated to the whole NG interface instance between the NG-RAN node 111and AMF 321). These services may include functions including, but notlimited to: a paging function for the sending of paging requests toNG-RAN nodes 111 involved in a particular paging area; UE Contextmanagement function for allowing the AMF 321 to establish, modify,and/or release a UE Context in the AMF 321 and the NG-RAN node 111;mobility function for UEs 101 in ECM-CONNECTED mode for intra-systemhandovers (Hos) to support mobility within NG-RAN and inter-system HOsto support mobility from/to EPS systems; NAS Signaling Transportfunction for transporting or rerouting NAS messages between UE 101 andAMF 321; a NAS node selection function for determining an associationbetween the AMF 321 and the UE 101; NG interface management function(s)for setting up the NG interface and monitoring for errors over the NGinterface; warning message transmission function provides means totransfer warning messages via NG interface or cancel ongoing broadcastof warning messages; Configuration Transfer function for requesting andtransferring of RAN configuration information (e.g., Self-OrganizingNetwork (SON) information, performance measurement (PM) data, etc.)between two RAN nodes 111 via CN 120; and/or other like functions.

The XnAP 863 may support the functions of the Xn interface 112 and maycomprise XnAP basic mobility procedures and XnAP global procedures. TheXnAP basic mobility procedures may comprise procedures used to handle UEmobility within the NG-RAN 120 (or E-UTRAN 120), such as handoverpreparation and cancellation procedures, SN Status Transfer procedures,UE context retrieval and UE context release procedures, RAN pagingprocedures, dual connectivity related procedures, and the like. The XnAPglobal procedures may comprise procedures that are not related to aspecific UE 101, such as Xn interface setup and reset procedures, NG-RANupdate procedures, cell activation procedures, and the like.

In LTE implementations, the AP 863 may be an S1 Application Protocollayer (S1-AP) 863 for the S1 interface 113 defined between a RAN node111 (which may be an E-UTRAN node) and an MME, or the AP 863 may be anX2 application protocol layer (X2AP or X2-AP) 863 for the X2 interface112 that is defined between two or more E-UTRAN nodes 111.

The S1 Application Protocol layer (S1-AP) 863 may support the functionsof the S1 interface, and similar to the NG-AP discussed previously, theS1-AP may comprise S1-AP EPs. An S1-AP EP may be a unit of interactionbetween the E-UTRAN node 111 and an MME 221 within an LTE CN 120. TheS1-AP 863 services may comprise two groups: UE-associated services andnon UE-associated services. These services perform functions including,but not limited to: E-UTRAN Radio Access Bearer (E-RAB) management, UEcapability indication, mobility, NAS signaling transport, RANInformation Management (RIM), and configuration transfer.

The X2AP 863 may support the functions of the X2 interface 112 and maycomprise X2AP basic mobility procedures and X2AP global procedures. TheX2AP basic mobility procedures may comprise procedures used to handle UEmobility within the E-UTRAN 120, such as handover preparation andcancellation procedures, SN Status Transfer procedures, UE contextretrieval and UE context release procedures, RAN paging procedures, dualconnectivity related procedures, and the like. The X2AP globalprocedures may comprise procedures that are not related to a specific UE101, such as X2 interface setup and reset procedures, load indicationprocedures, error indication procedures, cell activation procedures, andthe like.

The SCTP layer (alternatively referred to as the SCTP/IP layer) 862 mayprovide guaranteed delivery of application layer messages (e.g., NGAP orXnAP messages in NR implementations, or S1-AP or X2AP messages in LTEimplementations). The SCTP 862 may ensure reliable delivery of signalingmessages between the RAN node 111 and the AMF 321/MME 221 based, inpart, on the IP protocol, supported by the IP 861. The Internet Protocollayer (IP) 861 may be used to perform packet addressing and routingfunctionality. In some implementations the IP layer 861 may usepoint-to-point transmission to deliver or convey PDUs. In this regard,the RAN node 111 may comprise L2 and L1 layer communication links (e.g.,wired or wireless) with the MME/AMF to exchange information.

In a second example, a user plane protocol stack may comprise, in orderfrom highest layer to lowest layer, SDAP 847, PDCP 840, RLC 830, MAC820, and PHY 810. The user plane protocol stack may be used forcommunication between the UE 101, the RAN node 111, and UPF 302 in NRimplementations or an S-GW 222 and P-GW 223 in LTE implementations. Inthis example, upper layers 851 may be built on top of the SDAP 847, andmay include a user datagram protocol (UDP) and IP security layer(UDP/IP) 852, a General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) Tunneling Protocolfor the user plane layer (GTP-U) 853, and a User Plane Protocol DataUnit layer (UP PDU) 863.

The transport network layer 854 (also referred to as a “transportlayer”) may be built on IP transport, and the GTP-U 853 may be used ontop of the UDP/IP layer 852 (comprising a UDP layer and IP layer) tocarry user plane PDUs (UP-PDUs). The IP layer (also referred to as the“Internet layer”) may be used to perform packet addressing and routingfunctionality. The IP layer may assign IP addresses to user data packetsin any of IPv4, IPv6, or PPP formats, for example.

The GTP-U 853 may be used for carrying user data within the GPRS corenetwork and between the radio access network and the core network. Theuser data transported can be packets in any of IPv4, IPv6, or PPPformats, for example. The UDP/IP 852 may provide checksums for dataintegrity, port numbers for addressing different functions at the sourceand destination, and encryption and authentication on the selected dataflows. The RAN node 111 and the S-GW 222 may utilize an S1-U interfaceto exchange user plane data via a protocol stack comprising an L1 layer,an L2 layer, the UDP/IP layer 852, and the GTP-U 853. The S-GW 222 andthe P-GW 223 may utilize an S5/S8a interface to exchange user plane datavia a protocol stack comprising an L1 layer, an L2 layer, the UDP/IPlayer 852, and the GTP-U 853. As discussed previously, NAS protocols maysupport the mobility of the UE 101 and the session management proceduresto establish and maintain IP connectivity between the UE 101 and theP-GW 223.

Moreover, although not shown by FIG. 8, an application layer may bepresent above the AP 863 and/or the transport network layer 854. Theapplication layer may be a layer in which a user of the UE 101, RAN node111, or other network element interacts with software applications beingexecuted, for example, by application circuitry 405 or applicationcircuitry 505, respectively. The application layer may also provide oneor more interfaces for software applications to interact withcommunications systems of the UE 101 or RAN node 111, such as thebaseband circuitry 410/50. In some implementations the IP layer and/orthe application layer may provide the same or similar functionality aslayers 5-7, or portions thereof, of the Open Systems Interconnection(OSI) model (e.g., OSI Layer 7—the application layer, OSI Layer 6—thepresentation layer, and OSI Layer 5—the session layer). Communicationinterface 850 may be used to route data.

FIG. 9 illustrates components of a core network in accordance withvarious embodiments. The components of the CN 220 may be implemented inone physical node or separate physical nodes including components toread and execute instructions from a machine-readable orcomputer-readable medium (e.g., a non-transitory machine-readablestorage medium). In embodiments, the components of CN 320 may beimplemented in a same or similar manner as discussed herein with regardto the components of CN 220. In some embodiments, network functionsvirtualization (NFV) is utilized to virtualize any or all of the abovedescribed network node functions via executable instructions stored inone or more computer-readable storage mediums (described in furtherdetail below). A logical instantiation of the CN 220 may be referred toas a network slice 901, and individual logical instantiations of the CN220 may provide specific network capabilities and networkcharacteristics. A logical instantiation of a portion of the CN 220 maybe referred to as a network sub-slice 902 (e.g., the network sub-slice902 is shown to include the P-GW 223 and the PCRF 226).

As used herein, the terms “instantiate,” “instantiation,” and the likemay refer to the creation of an instance, and an “instance” may refer toa concrete occurrence of an object, which may occur, for example, duringexecution of program code. A network instance may refer to informationidentifying a domain, which may be used for traffic detection androuting in case of different IP domains or overlapping IP addresses. Anetwork slice instance may refer to a set of network functions (NFs)instances and the resources (e.g., compute, storage, and networkingresources) required to deploy the network slice.

With respect to 5G systems (see e.g., FIG. 3), a network slice mayinclude the CN control plane and user plane NFs, NG-RANs in a servingPLMN, and N3IWF functions in the serving PLMN. Individual network slicesmay have different Single Network Slice Selection Assistance Information(S-NSSAI) and/or may have different Slice/Service Types (SSTs). Networkslices may differ for supported features and network functionsoptimizations, and/or multiple network slice instances may deliver thesame service/features but for different groups of UEs (e.g., enterpriseusers). For example, individual network slices may deliver differentcommitted service(s) and/or may be dedicated to a particular customer orenterprise. In this example, each network slice may have differentS-NSSAIs with the same SST but with different slice differentiators.Additionally, a single UE may be served with one or more network sliceinstances simultaneously via a 5G access node (AN) and associated witheight different S-NSSAIs. Moreover, an AMF instance serving anindividual UE may belong to each of the network slice instances servingthat UE.

NFV architectures and infrastructures may be used to virtualize one ormore NFs, alternatively performed by proprietary hardware, onto physicalresources comprising a combination of industry-standard server hardware,storage hardware, or switches. In other words, NFV systems can be usedto execute virtual or reconfigurable implementations of one or more EPCcomponents/functions.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating components, according to someexample embodiments, of a system 1000 to support NFV. The system 1000 isillustrated as including a virtualized infrastructure manager (VIM)1002, a network function virtualization infrastructure (NFVI) 1004, aVNF manager (VNFM) 1006, virtualized network functions (VNFs) 1008, anelement manager (EM) 1010, an NFV Orchestrator (NFVO) 1012, and anetwork manager (NM) 1014.

The VIM 1002 manages the resources of the NFVI 1004. The NFVI 1004 caninclude physical or virtual resources and applications (includinghypervisors) used to execute the system 1000. The VIM 1002 may managethe life cycle of virtual resources with the NFVI 1004 (e.g., creation,maintenance, and tear down of virtual machines (VMs) associated with oneor more physical resources), track VM instances, track performance,fault and security of VM instances and associated physical resources,and expose VM instances and associated physical resources to othermanagement systems.

The VNFM 1006 may manage the VNFs 1008. The VNFs 1008 may be used toexecute EPC components/functions. The VNFM 1006 may manage the lifecycle of the VNFs 1008 and track performance, fault and security of thevirtual aspects of VNFs 1008. The EM 1010 may track the performance,fault and security of the functional aspects of VNFs 1008. The trackingdata from the VNFM 1006 and the EM 1010 may comprise, for example,performance measurement (PM) data used by the VIM 1002 or the NFVI 1004.Both the VNFM 1006 and the EM 1010 can scale up/down the quantity ofVNFs of the system 1000.

The NFVO 1012 may coordinate, authorize, release and engage resources ofthe NFVI 1004 in order to provide the requested service (e.g., toexecute an EPC function, component, or slice). The NM 1014 may provide apackage of end-user functions with the responsibility for the managementof a network, which may include network elements with VNFs,non-virtualized network functions, or both (management of the VNFs mayoccur via the EM 1010).

FIG. 11 is a block diagram illustrating components, according to someexample embodiments, able to read instructions from a machine-readableor computer-readable medium (e.g., a non-transitory machine-readablestorage medium) and perform any one or more of the methodologiesdiscussed herein. Specifically, FIG. 11 shows a diagrammaticrepresentation of hardware resources 1100 including one or moreprocessors (or processor cores) 1110, one or more memory/storage devices1120, and one or more communication resources 1130, each of which may becommunicatively coupled via a bus 1140. As used herein, the term“computing resource,” “hardware resource,” etc., may refer to a physicalor virtual device, a physical or virtual component within a computingenvironment, and/or physical or virtual component within a particulardevice, such as computer devices, mechanical devices, memory space,processor/CPU time and/or processor/CPU usage, processor and acceleratorloads, hardware time or usage, electrical power, input/outputoperations, ports or network sockets, channel/link allocation,throughput, memory usage, storage, network, database and applications,and/or the like. For embodiments where node virtualization (e.g., NFV)is utilized, a hypervisor 1102 may be executed to provide an executionenvironment for one or more network slices/sub-slices to utilize thehardware resources 1100. A “virtualized resource” may refer to compute,storage, and/or network resources provided by virtualizationinfrastructure to an application, device, system, etc.

The processors 1110 (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a reducedinstruction set computing (RISC) processor, a complex instruction setcomputing (CISC) processor, a graphics processing unit (GPU), a digitalsignal processor (DSP) such as a baseband processor, an applicationspecific integrated circuit (ASIC), a radio-frequency integrated circuit(RFIC), another processor, or any suitable combination thereof) mayinclude, for example, a processor 1112 and a processor 1114.

The memory/storage devices 1120 may include main memory, disk storage,or any suitable combination thereof. The memory/storage devices 1120 mayinclude, but are not limited to, any type of volatile or non-volatilememory such as dynamic random access memory (DRAM), static random-accessmemory (SRAM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM),electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), Flashmemory, solid-state storage, etc.

The communication resources 1130 may include interconnection or networkinterface components or other suitable devices to communicate with oneor more peripheral devices 1104 or one or more databases 1106 via anetwork 1108. For example, the communication resources 1130 may includewired communication components (e.g., for coupling via a UniversalSerial Bus (USB)), cellular communication components, NFC components,Bluetooth® components (e.g., Bluetooth® Low Energy), Wi-Fi® components,and other communication components. As used herein, the term “networkresource” or “communication resource” may refer to computing resourcesthat are accessible by computer devices via a communications network.The term “system resources” may refer to any kind of shared entities toprovide services, and may include computing and/or network resources.System resources may be considered as a set of coherent functions,network data objects or services, accessible through a server where suchsystem resources reside on a single host or multiple hosts and areclearly identifiable.

Instructions 1150 may comprise software, a program, an application, anapplet, an app, or other executable code for causing at least any of theprocessors 1110 to perform any one or more of the methodologiesdiscussed herein. The instructions 1150 may reside, completely orpartially, within at least one of the processors 1110 (e.g., within theprocessor's cache memory), the memory/storage devices 1120, or anysuitable combination thereof. Furthermore, any portion of theinstructions 1150 may be transferred to the hardware resources 1100 fromany combination of the peripheral devices 1104 or the databases 1106.Accordingly, the memory of processors 1110, the memory/storage devices1120, the peripheral devices 1104, and the databases 1106 are examplesof computer-readable and machine-readable media.

In some embodiments, one or more devices and/or components of FIGS. 1,2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, and/or some other Figure herein, andparticularly the baseband circuitry of FIG. 7, may be to: construct asystem information block 1—narrowband (SIB1-NB) signal for transmission;and transmit the SIB1-NB signal on a non-anchor carrier for timedivision duplexed (TDD) further enhanced narrowband internet-of-things(feNB-IoT).

In some embodiments, one or more devices and/or components of FIGS. 1,2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, and/or some other Figure herein, andparticularly the baseband circuitry of FIG. 7, may be to: receive asystem information block 1—narrowband (SIB1-NB) signal on a non-anchorcarrier for time division duplexed (TDD) further enhanced narrowbandinternet-of-things (feNB-IoT); and construct a signal for transmissionbased at least in part on the SIB1-NB signal.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram illustrating a next generation radio accessnetwork (NG-RAN) 1201 communicatively coupled to a fifth generation corenetwork (5GC) 1209, where the NG-RAN 1201 comprises a central-unitcontrol-plane (CU-CP) 1205, a central-unit user-plane (CU-UP) 1207, anda distributed unit (DU) 1203, according to one embodiment. The NG-RAN1201 may correspond to an access node, e.g., RAN 111 a or 111 bintroduced and described above with respect to FIGS. 1-12. In oneembodiment, the DU 1203, the CU-CP 1205, and the CU-UP 1207 areimplemented in an NG-RAN node (e.g., a gNodeB (gNB), etc.) thatinterfaces with a user equipment (UE). Thus, the CU-CP 1205 may also bereferred to as a gNB CU-CP 1205, CU-UP 1207 may also be referred to asgNB CU-UP 1207, and DU 1203 may also be referred to as gNB DU 1203. Inone embodiment, the DU 1203 interfaces with or is attached to the UE.

As shown in FIG. 12, an interface F1-C 1219 is used to communicativelycouple the DU 1203 and the CU-CP 1205. Also, an interface E1 1221 isused to communicatively couple the CU-UP 1207 and the CU-CP 1205.Additionally, an interface NG-C 1223 is used to communicatively couplethe CN 1209 and the CU-CP 1205. The interfaces F1-C 1219, E1 1221, andNG-C 1223 carry signaling for setting up, modifying, relocating, and/orreleasing a UE context or bearers. The interfaces F1-C 1219, E1 1221,and NG-C 1223 may also have other purposes.

FIG. 12 shows that the DU 1203 sends a message 1211 to the CU-UP 1207having a CU-UP tunnel endpoint identifier (TEID) and address (Addr). TheCU-UP TEID may be an F1 uplink (UL) TEID and the address may be an F1 ULtransport network layer address (TNLA) that are associated with theCU-UP 1207. In one embodiment, the message 1211 may be transmitted overa user plane interface that carries user data.

FIG. 12 also shows that the CU-UP 1207 sends a message 1213 to the DU1203 that includes a DU TEID and address. The DU TEID may be an F1downlink (DL) TEID and the address may be an F1 DL TNLA that areassociated with the DU 1203. In one embodiment, the message 1213 may betransmitted over a user plane interface that carries user data.

Additionally, the CU-UP 1207 may send a message 1215 to the CN 1209 thatincludes a user plane function (UPF) TEID and address. The UPF TEID maybe an NG-U UL TEID and the address may be an NG-U UL TNLA that are usedby the CU-UP 1207 to send UL user data to a UPF via a general packetradio service tunneling protocol user data (GTP-U) tunnel uniquelyidentified by the NG-U UL TEID and the NG-U UL TNLA. In one embodiment,the message 1215 may be transmitted over a user plane interface thatcarries user data.

Moreover, the CN 1209 may send a message 1217 to the CU-UP 1207 thatincludes a gNB TEID and an address. The gNB TEID may be an NG-U DL TEIDand the address may be an NG-U DL TNLA that may be used by a UPF to sendDL user data to the CU-UP 1207 via a GTP-U tunnel. In one embodiment,the message 1217 may be transmitted over a user place interface thatcarries user data. Because the CU-UP 1207 is likely to be installed in adata center, rather than a single physical node, a pool of transportnetwork layer addresses (TNLAs) rather than a single TNLA will bemanaged by the CU-UP 1207. On the other hand, considering dynamicresource scaling (possibly up or down), virtual machine (VM) migrationin the data center, and the well-known advantages of virtualization orcloud computing, a CU-UP 1207 may reject the E1-AP bearer setup requestreceived from the CU-CP 1205. This rejection may be due to a momentaryresource shortage. More specifically, due to the resource shortage, theCU-CP 1205 selects the CU-UP 1207 and the TNLA without any confirmationfrom the CU-CP 1205. Once the CU-UP 1207 rejects the E1-AP bearer setuprequest from the CU-CP 1205, the CU-CP 1205 has to performreconfiguration—that is, the CU-CP 1205 must reselect another availableCU-UP 1207 and inform the DU 1203 of the unavailability of the TNLA anda CU-UP TEID. Before reconfiguration occurs, the DU 1203 may transmituplink (UL) packets to the original CU-UP 1207, which can result inpacket loss. As a result of this packet loss, the resilience of a systemcomprising the CU-CP 1205, the CU-UP 1207, and the DU 1203 will bechallenged.

In embodiments, robust bearer setup and bearer relocate procedures maybe implemented, taking into account the characteristics of the CU-UP1207's centralized and virtualized deployments. In what follows, and asshown in FIG. 12, E1 procedures (e.g., bearer setup, bearer modify,etc.) performed before and after the F1 procedures (e.g., UE contextSetup, bearer setup, etc.) are described. Some advantages, as comparedwith one or more of the procedures set forth in TR 38.806's signalingflow, are:

1) the DU 1203 becomes resistant to the CU-UP 1207's rejection of bearersetup requests from the CU-CP 1205 during an initial context setup or abearer setup;

2) the TNLAs and general packet radio service tunneling protocol tunnelendpoint identifiers (GTP TEIDs) for downlink and uplink data deliverybetween the DU 1203 and the CU-UP 1207 can be set up; and

3) during local failure or VM migration of a CU-UP 1207, an E1 procedureknown as “bearer relocate” may be defined to notify the DU 1203 of thenew TNLA for one or more GTP tunnels affected by local failure or the VMmigration of the CU-UP 1207. That is, bearer relocation may be defined,which allows for exploiting centralized or virtualized deployment of theCU-UP 1207.

Embodiments according to the present disclosure avoid packet loss incase that the CU-UP 1207 rejects a bearer setup request from the CU-CP1205, which in turn improves system resilience. Embodiments describedherein may also enable VM migration of at least some portions of theCU-UP 1207, which is a notable upside of virtualization and cloudcomputing, by defining a procedure to support bearer relocation.

With regard again to FIG. 12, during an initial attach or beareractivation/modification, the CU-CP 1205, which is the control plane ofNG-RAN, may be responsible for: (i) managing bearers on the DU 1203 andthe CU-UP 1207; (ii) the setup, modification, and/or release ofresources; and/or (iii) notification of a TEID and a TNLA of a GTPendpoint. A GTP endpoint includes, but is not limited to, the DU 1203and the CU-UP 1207.

In some deployments, the CU-UP 1207, which is the central user-plane ofthe NG-RAN 1201, is installed in a data center to take advantage ofcloud computing and virtualization. Consequently, the CU-UP 1207 may beallocated with a pool of TNLAs. In contrast, the DU 1203 or an eNodeB (anetwork element of 4G LTE) are not allocated with a pool of TNLAs. Anotable advantage of cloud computing is that resources can bedynamically scaled up or down via VM or container migration, which isable to save energy in case of a low workload. Embodiments set forthherein, therefore, can assist with managing bearers during an initialattach procedure, a bearer activation procedure, and a VM migrationprocedure.

Embodiments described herein include a bearer setup procedure for a UEthat includes creating one or more bearers on an NG-RAN or gNodeBcomprising a CU-CP, a DU, and a CU-UP. In one embodiment, the process ofcreating the bearer(s) may be performed during an initial attachprocedure. In another embodiment, the process of creating the bearer(s)may be performed during a bearer activation procedure. The initialattach procedure is described below in connection with FIG. 13. Thebearer activation procedure is described below in connection with FIG.14.

With regard now to FIG. 13, a schematic illustration of one embodimentof a bearer setup procedure, which may be performed as part of aninitial attach procedure, is shown. In one embodiment, the bearer setupprocedure is initiated by the CU-CP 1205 to create one or more bearerson the DU 1203 and the CU-UP 1207 in response to the CU-CP 1205receiving a UE context and/or bearer activation request from the CN1209.

The initial attach procedure shown in FIG. 13 begins at operation 1301,where the CU-CP 1205 sends (e.g., transmits, broadcasts, etc.) an E1application protocol (E1-AP) bearer setup request message to the CU-UP1207. The E1-AP bearer setup request message may include, but is notlimited to, the UE context, NG-U UL transport layer information, andbearer information (e.g., data radio bearer (DRB) to setup list,protocol data unit (PDU) session to setup list, etc.). Next, atoperation 1303, the CU-UP 1207 processes the E1-AP bearer setup requestand, based on the processed information, the CU-UP 1207 responds to theE1-AP bearer setup request by generating and sending an E1-AP bearersetup response message. The E1-AP bearer setup response message mayinclude an F1 UL TNLA and an F1 UL TEID (used on the UL of F1, which isthe link from the DU 1203 to the CU-UP 1207) for the UE.

At operation 1305, the CU-CP 1205 sends an F1 application protocol(F1-AP) UE context setup request message to the DU 1203. The F1-AP UEcontext setup request message includes the transport layer address ofthe CU-UP (e.g., F1 UL TNLA), the CU-UP TEID (e.g., F1 UL TEID), and theUE context, so that the DU 1203 can route uplink data to the designatedCU-CP, e.g., CU-CP 1205. The DU 1203 may then process the receivedinformation. Also, at operation 1307, the DU 1203 sends an F1-AP UEcontext setup response message to the CU-CP 1205. The F1-AP UE contextsetup response message includes transport layer address of the DU 1203(e.g., F1 DL TNLA), DU TEID (e.g., an F1 DL TEID), and a lower layerdata radio bearer (DRB) configuration so that the CU-CP 1205 can routedownlink data to the designated DU, e.g., DU 1203.

Moving on to operation 1309, the CU-CP 1205 sends an E1-AP bearer modifyrequest message to the CU-UP 1207. The E1-AP bearer modify requestmessage includes the transport layer address of the DU 1203 (e.g., F1 DLTNLA) and the DU TEID (e.g., F1 DL TEID) (used on the downlink of F1,which is the link from the CU-UP 1207 to the DU 1203) for the particularUE. Next, at operation 1311, the CU-UP 1207 processes the F1 DL TNLA andthe F1 DL TEID, and sends an E1-AP bearer modify response message to theCU-CP 1205 to indicate establishment of one or more bi-directional GTPtunnels between the DU 1203 and the CU-UP 1207. In one embodiment, a GTPtunnel (or a bearer) is represented by a combination of a TEID and aTNLA. In one embodiment, a TEID is a major field in a GTP tunnel header.

In one embodiment, during the initial attach procedure, the NG-U DL TEIDand NG-U DL TNLA are allocated and communicated between the CU-CP 1205and the CU-UP 1207. In one embodiment, the NG-U DL TEID and NG-U DL TNLAare allocated by the CU-CP 1205 during any one of operations 1301, 1303,1309, or 1311. In one embodiment, the NG-U DL TEID and NG-U DL TNLA areallocated by the CU-UP 1207 during any one of operations 1301, 1303,1309, or 1311. Regardless of the how the NG-U DL TEID and NG-U DL TNLAare allocated, the NG-U DL TEID and NG-U DL TNLA are synchronizedbetween the CU-CP 1205 and the CU-UP 1207.

Moving on to FIG. 14, a schematic illustration of one embodiment of abearer activation (or setup) procedure is shown. The bearer activationprocedure shown in FIG. 14 is initiated by the CU-CP 1205 to create oneor more bearers on the DU 1203 and the CU-UP 1207 in response to theCU-CP 1205 receiving a bearer activation request from the CN 1209. Inone embodiment, the bearer activation procedure may be performed afterthe initial attach procedure described above in connection with FIG. 13.

The bearer activation procedure shown in FIG. 14 begins at operation1401, where the CU-CP 1205 sends (e.g., transmits, broadcasts, etc.) anE1-AP bearer setup request message to the CU-UP 1207. The E1-AP bearersetup request message sent at operation 1401 may be similar to themessage sent at operation 1301 of FIG. 13. Next, at operation 1403, theCU-UP 1207 processes the E1-AP bearer setup request message and, basedon the processed data, the CU-UP 1207 responds to the E1-AP bearer setuprequest message by sending an E1-AP bearer setup response message. TheE1-AP bearer setup response message may be similar to the message sentat operation 1303 of FIG. 13.

At operation 1405, the CU-CP 1205 sends an F1-AP bearer setup requestmessage to the DU 1203. This may be different from the proceduredescribed in FIG. 13 since a UE context may have already beenestablished during an initial attach. However, like the UE context setuprequest message, the F1-AP bearer setup request message may include thetransport layer address of the CU-UP 1207 (e.g., F1 UL TNLA) and theCU-UP TEID (e.g., the F1 UL TEID). The DU 1203 processes the informationin the F1-AP bearer setup request message and, at operation 1407, the DU1203 generates and sends an F1-AP bearer setup response message to theCU-CP 1205. The F1-AP bearer setup response includes a transport layeraddress of the DU 1203 (e.g., F1 DL TNLA), DU TEID (e.g., an F1 DLTEID), and a lower layer DRB configuration so that the CU-CP 1205 canroute downlink data to the designated DU, e.g., DU 1203.

Moving on to operation 1409, the CU-CP 1205 generates and sends an E1-APbearer modify request message to the CU-UP 1207. The E1-AP bearer modifyrequest message may be similar to the message sent at operation 1309 ofFIG. 13. Next, at operation 1411, the CU-UP 1207 processes theinformation in the E1-AP bearer modify request message and generates andsends an E1-AP bearer modify response message to the CU-CP 1205 toindicate activation of one or more bi-directional GTP tunnels betweenthe DU 1203 and the CU-UP 1207 by the CU-UP 1207.

In one embodiment, during the bearer activation procedure, the NG-U DLTEID and NG-U DL TNLA are allocated and communicated between the CU-CP1205 and the CU-UP 1207. In one embodiment, the NG-U DL TEID and NG-U DLTNLA are allocated by the CU-CP 1205 during any one of operations 1401,1403, 1409, or 1411. In one embodiment, the NG-U DL TEID and NG-U DLTNLA are allocated by the CU-UP 1207 during any one of operations 1401,1403, 1409, or 1411. Regardless of the how the NG-U DL TEID and NG-U DLTNLA are allocated, the NG-U DL TEID and NG-U DL TNLA are synchronizedbetween the CU-CP 1205 and the CU-UP 1207.

FIG. 15 is a schematic illustration of a bearer relocate procedure,according to one embodiment. As shown, the bearer relocate procedure isinitiated by the CU-UP 1207 to change the F1 UL TNLA of the CU-UP 1207for one or more GTP tunnels that have been affected by local failure orVM migration of at least one portion of the CU-UP. The local failure orVM migration may occur due to resource restructuring, resource shortage,or resource unavailability. For example, resources may be scaled down ina data center housing the CU-UP 1207 that require VM migration of atleast one portion of the CU-UP 1207.

Prior to performance of the bearer relocate procedure, one or more GTPtunnels associated with the CU-UP 1207 are assigned an F1 UL TNLA. Inresponse to local failure or VM migration of at least one portion of theCU-UP 1207, the bearer relocate procedure shown in FIG. 15 is initiatedto change the F1 UL TNLA of the affected GTP tunnel(s). The procedureshown in FIG. 15 begins at operation 1501, where the CU-UP 1207 sends anE1-AP bearer relocate request message to the CU-CP 1205. In oneembodiment, the E1-AP bearer relocate request message includes a newtransport layer address (e.g., F1 UL TNLA) for the one or more affectedGTP tunnels. The new F1 UL TNLA, which was assigned by the CU-UP 1207 tothe affected GTP tunnel(s), differs from the F1 UL TNLA that wasassigned to the GTP tunnel(s) prior to performance of the bearerrelocate procedure.

Next, at operation 1503, the CU-CP 1205 generates and sends an F1-APbearer modify request message to the DU 1203. The F1-AP bearer modifyrequest message includes the newly assigned F1 UL TNLA for the affectedbearer(s) (e.g., the affected GTP tunnel(s)).

At operation 1505, the DU 1203 generates and sends an F1-AP bearermodify response message to the CU-CP 1205. The F1-AP bearer modifyresponse message may include a newly assigned F1 DL TNLA for theaffected bearer(s) (e.g., the affected GTP tunnel(s)).

Moving on, at operation 1507, the CU-CP 1205 sends an E1-AP bearerrelocation acknowledgment message to the CU-UP 1207 to acknowledge asuccessful bearer relocation. In one embodiment, the bearer relocationacknowledgement message comprises a second TNLA for F1 downlink (DL). Inone embodiment, the second TNLA is updated by the DU for each affectedGTP-U tunnel. In one embodiment, the second TNLA is not updated.

It is to be appreciated that the F1 UL TEID associated with the affectedbearer(s) (e.g., the affected GTP tunnel(s)) may or may not have changedprior to, during, or after performance of any one of the operationsdescribed above in connection with FIG. 15. For example, the CU-UP 1207may assign a new F1 UL TEID to the affected bearer(s) (e.g., theaffected GTP tunnel(s)) prior to, during, or after performance of anyone of the operations described above in connection with FIG. 15.

FIG. 16 is a flowchart illustration of a method 1600 of performingbearer setup during an initial attach procedure, according to oneembodiment. The method 1600 can be performed by a CU-CP (e.g., the CU-CP1205, etc.). The method 1600 begins at operation 1601, where a UEcontext is received from a 5GC, as described above in connection withFIG. 13. Next, at operation 1603, an E1-AP bearer setup request messageis transmitted to a CU-UP, as described above in connection with FIG.13. At operation 1605, an E1-AP bearer setup response message isreceived from the CU-UP, as described above in connection with FIG. 13.At operation 1607, an F1-AP UE context setup request message istransmitted to a DU, as described above in connection with FIG. 13.Following that, at operation 1609, an F1-AP UE context setup responsemessage is received from the DU, as described above in connection withFIG. 13. Moving on, at operation 1611, an E1-AP bearer modify requestmessage is transmitted to the CU-UP, as described above in connectionwith FIG. 13. The method 1600 proceeds to operation 1613, where an E1-APbearer modify response message is received from the CU-UP, as describedabove in connection with FIG. 13. In one embodiment, the method 1600enables establishment of one or more GTP tunnels between the DU and theCU-UP.

FIG. 17 is a flowchart illustration of a method 1700 of performing abearer activation procedure, according to one embodiment. The method1700 can be performed by a CU-CP (e.g., the CU-CP 1205). The method 1700begins at operation 1701, where a bearer activation request message isreceived from a 5GC, as described above in connection with FIG. 14.Next, at operation 1703, an E1-AP bearer setup request message istransmitted to a CU-UP, as described above in connection with FIG. 14.At operation 1705, an E1-AP bearer setup response message is receivedfrom the CU-UP, as described above in connection with FIG. 14. Atoperation 1707, an F1-AP bearer setup request message is transmitted toa DU, as described above in connection with FIG. 14. Following that, atoperation 1709, an F1-AP bearer setup response message is received fromthe DU, as described above in connection with FIG. 14. Moving on, atoperation 1711, an E1-AP bearer modify request message is transmitted tothe CU-UP, as described above in connection with FIG. 14. The method1700 proceeds to operation 1713, where an E1-AP bearer modify responsemessage is received from the CU-UP, as described above in connectionwith FIG. 14. In one embodiment, the method 1700 enables activation orestablishment of one or more GTP tunnels between the DU and the CU-UP.

FIG. 18 is a flowchart illustration of a method 1800 of performing abearer relocation procedure, according to one embodiment. The method1800 may be performed by a CU-UP (e.g., CU-UP 1207, etc.). The method1800 begins at operation 1801, where one or more GTP tunnels areassigned a new TNLA and/or TEID, as described above in connection withFIG. 15. Next, at operation 1803, an E1-AP bearer relocate requestmessage is transmitted to a CU-CP, as described above in connection withFIG. 15. After the CU-CP has communicated the new F1 UL TNLA and F1 ULTEID to the corresponding DU via an F1 UE Context Modify procedure(e.g., operations 1503 and 1505 that are described above in connectionFIG. 15), the method 1800 proceeds to operation 1805. Here, an E1-APbearer relocation acknowledgment message is received from the CU-CP toindicate that the assigned TNLA and/or TEID has been used to replace apreviously assigned TNLA and/or TEID, as described above in connectionwith FIG. 15. The method 1800 can be used to change an F1 UL TNLA and/oran F1 UL TEID of one or more GTP tunnels affected by local failure or VMmigration of at least one portion of the CU-UP.

FIG. 19 is a flowchart illustration of a method 1900 of modifyingbearers for a UE, according to one embodiment. In embodiments, a deviceor apparatus (e.g., a gNodeB, baseband circuitry, a central processingunit (CPU), etc.) selected from FIGS. 1-4, 12-18, or some other figureherein, may be used to perform the method 1900. The method 1900 beginsat operation 1901, where a device or apparatus receives a first messagefrom a 5G Core Network (5GC). Next, at operation 1903, the device orapparatus selects a CU-UP and sends a second message to the selectedCU-UP to reserve resources for a UE. Next, at operation 1905, the deviceor apparatus sends a third message to a DU to which the UE is attachedto reserve and configure resources for the UE. The method 1900 proceedsto operation 1907, where the device or apparatus sends a fourth messageto the CU-UP to modify bearers for the UE.

In some embodiments, the first message from 5GC contains an NG-U UL TEIDand an NG-U UL TNLA of the User Plane Function (UPF) of 5GC. In someembodiments, the second message is further to contain an NG-U UL TNLAand a TEID of the UPF, and, if the device or apparatus is responsiblefor configuring it, the second message also includes an F1 UL TEID. Insome embodiments, the second message may invoke a fifth message from theCU-UP that includes an F1 UL TEID assigned by the CU-UP and a TNLA ofthe CU-UP to be used on an F1 interface that connects the CU-UP and aDU. In some embodiments, the third message contains an F1 UL TNLA andTEID of a selected CU-UP. In some embodiments, the third message mayinvoke a sixth message from the DU that includes an F1 DL TEID assignedby the DU and a TNLA of the DU. In some embodiments, the fourth messagecontains an F1 DL TEID and a TNLA of the DU, and may include an NG-U DLTEID if the device or apparatus is responsible for configuring the NG-UDL TEID.

FIG. 20 is a flowchart illustration of a method 2000 of modifyingbearers for a UE, according to one embodiment. In embodiments, a deviceor apparatus (e.g., a gNodeB, baseband circuitry, a central processingunit (CPU), etc.) selected from FIGS. 1-4, 12-18, or some other figureherein, may be used to perform the method 2000. The method 2000 beginsat operation 2001, where the device or apparatus receives a firstmessage from a CU-CP. Next, at operation 2003, the device or apparatusreserves resources for a particular UE, allocates an F1 UL TEID for aparticular bearer of the UE, and responds with a second message. Themethod 2000 proceeds to operation 2005, where the device or apparatusreceives a third message from the CU-CP, and configures an F1 DL TEIDand a TNLA accordingly. Next, at operation 2007, the device or apparatustransmits or receives data packets to or from a DU that the CU-UP isconnected to. At operation 2009, the device or apparatus transmits orreceives data packets to or from a 5GC.

In some embodiments, the first message contains an NG-U UL TEID and anNG-U UL TNLA of a UPF, and if the CU-CP is responsible for configuringan NG-U DL TEID, then the first message is to further include the NG-UDL TEID. In some embodiments, the second message contains an F1 UL TEIDassigned by the device or apparatus, an F1 UL TNLA of the apparatus,and, if the apparatus is responsible for configuring an NG-U DL TEID,then the second message is to further include the NG-U DL TEID. In someembodiments, the third message contains an F1 DL TEID assigned by the DUand an F1 DL TNLA of the DU, and if the CU-CP is responsible forconfiguring an NG-U DL TEID, then the third message may include the NG-UDL TEID.

In some embodiments, a device or apparatus selected from one or more ofFIGS. 1-4, 12-18, or some other figure herein, may be configured to:receive a first message from a CU-CP, and reserve and configureresources for a particular UE; and transmit or receive data packets toor from a CU-UP that the apparatus is connected to. In furtherembodiments, the first message contains an F1 UL TEID assigned by aCU-UP and an F1 UL TNLA of the CU-UP. In further embodiments, the deviceor apparatus may be configured to send, in response to the firstmessage, a second message to the CU-CP, where the message contains an F1DL TEID assigned by the device or apparatus and an F1 DL TNLA of theapparatus.

In some embodiments, a device or apparatus selected from one or more ofFIGS. 1-4, 12-18, or some other figure herein, may be configured to:receive a first message from a CU-UP in case of bearer relocationinduced by local failure or VM migration or other reasons. In furtherembodiments, the first message contains a new F1 UL TNLA of a GTP tunnelto be relocated. In further embodiments, the device or apparatus isfurther configured to transmit a second message to a DU, where thesecond message contains a new F1 UL TNLA of GTP tunnel to be relocated.

FIG. 21 is a schematic illustration of process of a call flow from anidle state to a connected state with a bearer setup procedure embeddedin the call flow, according to one embodiment. As shown, the call flowis implemented by a UE 2103, a gNodeB 2101, and CN 1209, where thegNodeB 2101 comprises a DU 1203, a CU-CP 1205, and a CU-UP 1207. Thecall flow shown in FIG. 21 begins at operation 1, where the UE 2103generates and sends a random access message to the DU 1203. Next, atoperation 2, The DU 1203 processes the random access message andgenerates and sends a random access response message to the UE 2103. Atoperation 3, the UE 2103 generates and sends a radio resource control(RRC) connection setup request message to the DU 1203. In oneembodiment, the RRC connection setup request message will include a corenetwork (CN) UE temporary identifier. Next, operation 4 a is performed.Operation 4 a includes the DU 1203 generating and responding to the RRCconnection setup request message, with a layer 2 (L2) contentionresolution message. In one embodiment, the L2 contention resolutionmessage echoes the content(s) of the RRC connection setup requestmessage back to the UE 2103. The L2 contention resolution message can begenerated and sent before or after operation 4 b, which includes the DU1203 generating and sending the RRC connection setup request message tothe CU-CP 1205 in an F1-AP initial UL RRC message. This message includesadditional information such as an F1-AP UE identifier, a UE assignedcell radio network temporary identifier (C-RNTI), and a lower layerconfiguration. Next, at operation 5, in response to the CU-CP 1205accepting the UE 2103, the CU-CP 1205 will generate an RRC connectionsetup message and send this message in an F1-AP DL RRC transfer messageto the DU 1203. In addition to the RRC connection setup message, theF1-AP DL RRC transfer message contains an F1-AP UE identifier. Thecontent of the RRC connection setup message may include informationreceived from the DU 1203 in operation 4. At operation 6 and 7, the RRCconnection is set up via messages communicated between the UE 2103 andthe DU 1203. Next, at operation 8, the DU 1203 forwards the UE RRCmessage to the CU-CP 1205. The forwarded RRC message may contain NASinformation, information related to CN node selection, slicinginformation, etc. Operation 9 includes the CU-CP 1205 sending an NG-APinitial UE message to the CN 1209. Operation 10 includes the CN 1209generating and sending an NG-AP initial context setup request message inresponse to the CN 1209's decision to set up the UE context.

Next, at operation 11 (e.g., 11 a, 11 b, 11 b′), the RAN 2101 receivesthe UE context and initiates several procedures, some of which mayhappen in parallel. Operations 11 a-13 a correspond to the security modecommand procedure triggering the setup of UE security. From this pointon, subsequent radio signaling or data will be encrypted and thesignaling will be integrity protected. These operations can be performedin parallel with operations 11 b-13 b′.

With regard now to operations 11 b-11 b′, the CU-CP 1205 secures anaddress (e.g., a TNLA, etc.), a CU-UP TEID (used on F1), and resourcesin the CU-UP 1207 for the UE 2103. In one embodiment, the CU-UP 1207allocates the CU-UP TEID to the UE 2103; however, the DU 1203's TEIDwill be updated in operations 13 b-13 b′.

Moving on to operations 12 b-12 b′, the CU-CP 1205 generates and sendsan F1-AP UE context setup request message to the DU 1203 in order to setup resources in the DU 1203 for the UE 2103. The DU 1203 then generatesand sends an F1-AP UE context setup response message to the CU-CP 1205.A DU TEID (used on F1) and an address (e.g., a TNLA, etc.) associatedwith the DU 1203 are included in the F1-AP UE context setup responsemessage. In operation 12 b, the DU 1203 is provided with UE contextinformation including UE radio access capabilities, one or more UE dataradio bearers (DRBs), a CU-UP TEID, and quality of service (QoS) relatedinformation. The DU 1203 then configures and allocates resources for theUE 2103. In operation 12 b′, the lower layer configuration of the DRB(s)are provided to the CU-CP 1205.

Referring now to operations 13-13 b′, the CU-CP 1205 generates and sendsan E1-AP bearer modification message to the CU-UP 1207 to update the DUTEID and the address (e.g., a TNLA, etc.) associated with the DU 1203.The CU-UP 1207 also completes creation of one or more bearers for theparticular UE 2103 in response to the E1-AP bearer modification message.Following creation of the bearer(s), the CU-UP 1207 generates and sendsan E1-AP bearer modification response message to the CU-CP 1205 toindicate completion of the creation of the bearer(s).

In one embodiment, a TEID used on NG-U can be allocated by either theCU-CP 1205 or the CU-UP 1207. However, this TEID should be synchronizedbetween the CU-CP 1205 or the CU-UP 1207 via any of operations 11 b, 11b′, 13 b and 13 b′.

Operation 15 includes the CU-CP 1205 generating and sending an RRCconnection reconfiguration message to the DU 1203. In one embodiment,operation 15 is performed after operations 12 b-12 b′, since the RRCmessage contains lower layer configuration of the DRBs provided by theDU 1203. In one embodiment, operation 15 can happen before operations 14and 13 b′. Next, and with regard to operations 16 and 17, an RRCreconfiguration procedure is performed by communicating messages betweenthe DU 1203 and the UE 2103. After performance of operations 16 and 17,UL data transmission can start. Operation 18 includes the DU 1203encapsulating the RRC message in an F1-AP UL RRC message transfermessage and sending the message to the CU-CP 1205. Next, operation 19 isperformed. Operation 19 includes the CU-CP 1205 generates and sends anNG-AP initial context setup response message to the CN 1209 in order toacknowledge the context setup request from the CN 1209. The CU-CP 1205also provides the CN 1209 with one or more TEIDs for the CU-UP 1207 atoperation 19.

For one or more embodiments, at least one of the components set forth inone or more of the preceding figures may be configured to perform one ormore operations, techniques, processes, and/or methods as set forth inthe example section below. For example, the baseband circuitry asdescribed above in connection with one or more of the preceding figuresmay be configured to operate in accordance with one or more of theexamples set forth below. For another example, circuitry associated witha UE, base station, network element, etc. as described above inconnection with one or more of the preceding figures may be configuredto operate in accordance with one or more of the examples set forthbelow in the example section.

EXAMPLES

The examples set forth herein are illustrative not exhaustive.

Example 1 may include an apparatus for computing, comprising:

-   -   means to receive a first message from a 5G Core Network (5GC);    -   means to select a central-unit user-plane (CU-UP) and means to        send a second message to the selected CU-UP to reserve resources        for a particular user equipment (UE);    -   means to send a third message to a DU to which the UE is        attached, to reserve and configure resources for the UE; and    -   means to send a fourth message to the CU-UP to modify bearers        for the UE.

Example 2 may include the apparatus for computing of example 1, or otherexample herein, wherein the first message from 5GC contains TEID andtransport network layer address of a user plane function (UPF) of 5GC.

Example 3 may include the apparatus for computing of example 1, or otherexample herein, wherein a second message sent by the means to send asecond message contains transport network layer address and TEID of UserPlane Function (UPF), and may include gNB TEID if the apparatus forcomputing is responsible for configuring it.

Example 4 may include the apparatus for computing of example 1, or otherexample herein, wherein the second message may invoke a fifth messagefrom the CU-UP which includes CU-UP TEID assigned by the CU-UP,transport network layer address of the CU-UP to be used on an F1interface, which connects the CU-UP and a distributed unit (DU).

Example 5 may include the apparatus for computing of example 1, or otherexample herein, wherein the third message contains transport networklayer address and TEID of the selected CU-UP.

Example 6 may include the apparatus for computing of example 1, or otherexample herein, wherein the third message may invoke a sixth messagefrom the DU which includes a DU TEID assigned by the DU and a transportnetwork layer address of the DU.

Example 7 may include the apparatus for computing of example 1, or otherexample herein, wherein the fourth message contains a DU TEID and atransport network layer address of the DU, and may include a gNB TEID ifthe apparatus for computing is responsible for configuring it.

Example 8 may include an apparatus for computing, comprising:

-   -   means to receive a first message from a CU-CP;    -   means to reserve resources for a particular UE, and means to        allocate CU-UP TEID for a particular bearer of the UE and means        to respond with a second message;    -   means to receive a third message from the CU-CP, and means to        configure a DU TEID and a transport network layer address        accordingly;    -   means to transmit or receive data packets to or from a DU that        the CU-CP is connected to; and    -   means to transmit or receive data packets to or from a 5G Core        Network (5GC).

Example 9 may include the apparatus for computing of example 8, or otherexample herein, wherein the first message contains TEID and transportnetwork layer address of UPF, and, if the CU-CP is responsible forconfiguring it, also includes a gNB TEID.

Example 10 may include the apparatus for computing of example 8, orother example herein, wherein the second message contains a CU-UP TEIDassigned by the apparatus, a transport network layer address of theapparatus, and if the apparatus for computing is responsible forconfiguring it, is further to include a gNB TEID.

Example 11 may include the apparatus for computing of example 8, orother example herein, wherein the third message contains a DU TEIDassigned by the DU and transport network layer address of the DU, and ifthe CU-CP is responsible for configuring it, a gNB TEID.

Example 12 may include an apparatus for computing, comprising:

-   -   means to receive a first message from a CU-CP;    -   means to reserve and configure resources for a particular UE;        and    -   means to transmit or receive data packets to or from a CU-CP        that the apparatus for computing is connected to.

Example 13 may include the apparatus for computing of example 12, orother example herein, wherein the first message contains CU-UP TEIDassigned by a CU-UP and a transport network layer address of the CU-UP.

Example 14 may include the apparatus for computing of example 12, orother example herein, further comprising means to send, in response tothe first message, a second message to the CU-CP, the second message tocontain a DU TEID assigned by the DU and a transport network layeraddress of the DU.

Example 15 may include an apparatus for computing, comprising means toreceive a first message from a CU-UP in case of bearer relocationinduced by VM migration or other reasons.

Example 16 may include the apparatus for computing of example 15, orother example herein, wherein the first message contains a new transportnetwork layer address of a GTP tunnel to be relocated.

Example 17 may include the apparatus for computing of example 15, orother example herein, further comprising means to transmit a secondmessage to a DU, the second message to contain a new transport networklayer address of GTP tunnel to be relocated.

Example 18 may include the apparatus for computing of any one ofexamples 1-7, wherein the apparatus for computing is a central-unitcontrol-plane (CU-CP) of NG-RAN.

Example 19 may include the apparatus for computing of any one ofexamples 8-11, wherein the apparatus for computing is a central-unituser-plane (CU-UP) of NG-RAN.

Example 20 may include the apparatus for computing of any one ofexamples 12-14, wherein the apparatus for computing is a distributedunit (DU) of NG-RAN.

Example 21 may include an apparatus, to:

-   -   receive a first message from 5G Core Network (5GC);    -   select a central-unit user-plane (CU-UP) and means to send a        second message to the selected CU-UP to reserve resources for a        particular user equipment (UE);    -   send a third message to a DU to which the UE is attached, to        reserve and configure resources for the UE; and    -   send a fourth message to the CU-UP to modify bearers for the        particular UE.

Example 22 may include the apparatus of example 21, or other exampleherein, wherein the first message from 5GC contains TEID and transportnetwork layer address of a user plane function (UPF) of 5GC.

Example 23 may include the apparatus of example 21, or other exampleherein, wherein the second message is further to contain a transportnetwork layer address and a TEID of User Plane Function (UPF), and, ifthe apparatus is responsible for configuring it, also to include a gNBTEID.

Example 24 may include the apparatus of example 21, or other exampleherein, wherein the second message invokes a fifth message from theCU-UP which includes a CU-UP TEID assigned by the CU-UP, a transportnetwork layer address of the CU-UP to be used on an F1 interface whichconnects the CU-UP, and a distributed unit (DU).

Example 25 may include the apparatus of example 21, or other exampleherein, wherein the third message contains a transport network layeraddress and a TEID of the selected CU-UP.

Example 26 may include the apparatus of example 21, or other exampleherein, wherein the third message may invoke a sixth message from the DUwhich includes a DU TEID assigned by the DU and a transport networklayer address of the DU.

Example 27 may include the apparatus of example 21, or other exampleherein, wherein the fourth message contains a DU TEID and a transportnetwork layer address of the DU, and, if the apparatus is responsiblefor configuring it, further includes a gNB TEID

Example 28 may include an apparatus, to:

-   -   receive a first message from a CU-CP;    -   reserve resources for a particular UE, allocate a CU-UP TEID for        a particular bearer of the UE and respond with a second message;    -   receive a third message from the CU-CP, and configure a DU TEID        and a transport network layer address accordingly;    -   transmit or receive data packets to or from a DU that the CU-CP        is connected to; and    -   transmit or receive data packets to or from a 5G Core Network        (5GC).

Example 29 may include the apparatus of example 28, or other exampleherein, wherein the first message contains a TEID and transport networklayer address of a UPF, and if the CU-UP is responsible for configuringit, a gNB TEID.

Example 30 may include the apparatus of example 28, or other exampleherein, wherein the second message contains a CU-UP TEID assigned by theapparatus, a transport network layer address of the apparatus, and, ifthe apparatus is responsible for configuring it, is to further include agNB TEID.

Example 31 may include the apparatus of example 28, or other exampleherein, wherein the third message contains a DU TEID assigned by the DUand a transport network layer address of the DU, and if the CU-CP isresponsible for configuring it, a gNB TEID.

Example 32 may include an apparatus, to:

-   -   receive a first message from a CU-CP, and reserve and configure        resources for a particular UE; and    -   transmit or receive data packets to or from a CU-CP that the        apparatus is connected to.

Example 33 may include the apparatus of example 32 or other exampleherein, wherein the first message contains a CU-UP TEID assigned by aCU-UP and a transport network layer address of the CU-UP.

Example 34 may include the apparatus of example 32, or other exampleherein, further to: in response to the first message, send a secondmessage to the CU-CP which contains a DU TEID assigned by the apparatusand a transport network layer address of the apparatus.

Example 35 may include an apparatus, to: receive a first message from aCU-UP in case of bearer relocation induced by VM migration or otherreasons.

Example 36 may include the apparatus of example 35, or other exampleherein, wherein the first message contains a new transport network layeraddress of a GTP tunnel to be relocated.

Example 37 may include the apparatus of example 35, or other exampleherein, further to transmit a second message to a DU, the second messageto contain a new transport network layer address of a GTP tunnel to berelocated.

Example 38 may include the apparatus of any one of examples 21-27,wherein the apparatus is a central-unit control-plane (CU-CP) of NG-RAN.

Example 39 may include the apparatus of any one of examples 28-31,wherein the apparatus is a central-unit user-plane (CU-UP) of NG-RAN.

Example 40 may include the apparatus of any one of examples 32-34,wherein the apparatus is a distributed unit (DU) of NG-RAN.

Example 41 may include a method, comprising:

-   -   receiving or causing to receive a first message from 5G Core        Network (5GC);    -   selecting or causing to select a central-unit user-plane (CU-UP)        and sending or causing to send a second message to the selected        CU-UP to reserve resources for a particular user equipment (UE);    -   sending or causing to send a third message to a DU to which the        UE is attached, to reserve and configure resources for the UE;        and    -   sending or causing to send a fourth message to the CU-UP to        modify bearers for the particular UE.

Example 42 may include the method of example 41, or other exampleherein, wherein the first message from 5GC contains a TEID and atransport network layer address of a user plane function (UPF) of 5GC.

Example 43 may include the method of example 41, or other exampleherein, further comprising including or causing to include in the secondmessage a transport network layer address and a TEID of User PlaneFunction (UPF), and possibly including or causing to include a gNB TEID.

Example 44 may include the method of example 41, or other exampleherein, wherein the second message invokes a fifth message from theCU-UP which includes a CU-UP TEID assigned by the CU-UP, a transportnetwork layer address of the CU-UP to be used on an F1 interface whichconnects the CU-UP, and a distributed unit (DU).

Example 45 may include the method of example 41, or other exampleherein, further comprising including or causing to include in the thirdmessage a transport network layer address and a TEID of the selectedCU-UP.

Example 46 may include the method of example 41, or other exampleherein, wherein the third message may invoke a sixth message from the DUwhich includes a DU TEID assigned by the DU and a transport networklayer address of the DU.

Example 47 may include the method of example 41, or other exampleherein, further comprising including or causing to include in the fourthmessage a DU TEID and a transport network layer address of the DU, andpossibly including or causing to include a gNB TEID.

Example 48 may include a method, comprising:

-   -   receiving or causing to receive a first message from a CU-CP;    -   reserving or causing to reserve resources for a particular UE,        allocating or causing to allocate a CU-UP TEID for a particular        bearer of the UE and responding or causing to respond with a        second message;    -   receiving or causing to receive a third message from the CU-CP,        and configure a DU TEID and a transport network layer address        accordingly;    -   transmitting or receiving, or causing to transmit or to receive,        data packets to or from a DU that the CU-CP is connected to; and    -   transmitting or receiving, or causing to transmit or to receive,        data packets to or from a 5G Core Network (5GC).

Example 49 may include the method of example 48, or other exampleherein, wherein the first message contains a TEID and transport networklayer address of a UPF, and if the CU-CP is responsible for configuringit, further includes a gNB TEID.

Example 50 may include the method of example 48, or other exampleherein, further comprising including or causing to include, in thesecond message, a CU-UP TEID assigned by a CU-UP, a transport networklayer address of the CU-UP, and further including or causing to includea gNB TEID.

Example 51 may include the method of example 48, or other exampleherein, wherein the third message contains a DU TEID assigned by the DUand a transport network layer address of the DU, and if the CU-CP isresponsible for configuring it, further includes a gNB TEID.

Example 52 may include a method, comprising:

-   -   receiving or causing to receive a first message from a CU-CP,        and reserve and configure resources for a particular UE; and    -   transmitting or receiving, or causing to transmit or receive,        data packets to or from a connected CU-CP.

Example 53 may include the method of example 52 or other example herein,wherein the first message contains a CU-UP TEID assigned by a CU-UP anda transport network layer address of the CU-UP.

Example 54 may include the method of example 52, or other exampleherein, further comprising: in response to the first message, sending orcausing to send a second message to the CU-CP which contains a DU TEIDand a transport network layer address.

Example 55 may include a method, comprising:

-   -   receiving or causing to receive a first message from a CU-UP in        case of bearer relocation induced by VM migration or other        reasons.

Example 56 may include the method of example 55, or other exampleherein, wherein the first message contains a new transport network layeraddress of a GTP tunnel to be relocated.

Example 57 may include the method of example 55, or other exampleherein, further comprising: transmitting or causing to transmit a secondmessage to a DU, the second message to contain a new transport networklayer address of a GTP tunnel to be relocated.

Example 58 may include the method of any one of examples 41-47, whereinthe method is performed by a central-unit control-plane (CU-CP) ofNG-RAN, or a portion thereof.

Example 59 may include the method of any one of examples 48-51, whereinthe method is performed by a central-unit user-plane (CU-UP) of NG-RAN,or a portion thereof.

Example 60 may include the method of any one of examples 52-54, whereinthe method is performed by a distributed unit (DU) of NG-RAN, or aportion thereof.

Example 61 may include central-unit control-plane (CU-CP) of NG-RAN,which

-   -   receives a first message from 5G Core Network (5GC), then        selects a central-unit user-plane (CU-UP) and sends a second        message to the selected CU-UP to reserve resources for a        particular user equipment (UE);    -   sends a third message to the DU to which the UE is attached, to        reserve and configure resources for the UE;    -   sends a fourth message to the CU-UP to modify bearers for the        particular UE.

Example 62 may include the CU-CP of example 61 or some other exampleherein, wherein the first message from 5GC contains TEID and transportnetwork layer address of a User Plane Function (UPF) of 5GC.

Example 63 may include the CU-CP of example 61 or some other exampleherein, wherein the second message contains transport network layeraddress and TEID of User Plane Function (UPF), and may include gNB TEIDif the CU-CP is responsible for configuring it.

Example 64 may include the CU-CP of example 61 or some other exampleherein, wherein the second message may invoke a fifth message from theCU-UP which includes CU-UP TEID assigned by the CU-UP, transport networklayer address of the CU-UP to be used on F1 interface, which connectsCU-UP and distributed unit (DU).

Example 65 may include the CU-CP of example 61 or some other exampleherein, wherein the third message contains transport network layeraddress and TEID of the selected CU-UP.

Example 66 may include the CU-CP of example 61 or some other exampleherein, wherein the third message may invoke a sixth message from DUwhich includes DU TEID assigned by the DU and transport network layeraddress of the DU.

Example 67 may include the CU-CP of example 61 or some other exampleherein, wherein the fourth message contains DU TEID and transportnetwork layer address of the DU, and may include gNB TEID if the CU-CPis responsible for configuring it.

Example 68 may include a central-unit user-plane (CU-UP) of NG-RAN,which

-   -   receives a first message from a CU-CP, then reserves resources        for a particular UE, allocates CU-UP TEID for a particular        bearer of the UE and responds with a second message;    -   receives a third message from the CU-CP, and then configures DU        TEID and transport network layer address accordingly;    -   transmits/receives data packets to/from a DU that the CU-CP is        connected to; and    -   transmits/receives data packets to/from 5GC.

Example 69 may include the CU-UP of example 68 or some other exampleherein, wherein the first message contains TEID and transport networklayer address of a UPF, and may include gNB TEID if the CU-CP isresponsible for configuring it.

Example 70 may include the CU-UP of example 68 or some other exampleherein, wherein the second message contains CU-UP TEID assigned by theCU-UP, transport network layer address of the CU-UP and may include gNBTEID if the CU-UP is responsible for configuring it.

Example 71 may include the CU-UP of example 68 or some other exampleherein, wherein the third message contains DU TEID assigned by the DUand transport network layer address of the DU, and may include gNB TEIDif the CU-CP is responsible for configuring it.

Example 72 may include a distributed unit (DU) of NG-RAN, which receivesa first message from a CU-CP, and then reserves and configures resourcesfor a particular UE;

-   -   transmits/receives data packets to/from the CU-CP that the DU is        connected to.

Example 73 may include the DU of example 72 or some other exampleherein, wherein the first message contains CU-UP TEID assigned by aCU-UP and transport network layer address of the CU-UP.

Example 74 may include the DU of example 72 or some other exampleherein, where the first message may invoke a second message to CU-CPwhich contains DU TEID assigned by the DU and transport network layeraddress of the DU.

Example 75 may include a CU-CP of NG-RAN, in case of VM migration orother reasons induced bearer relocation, which receives a first messagefrom a CU-UP.

Example 76 may include the CU-CP of example 75 or some other exampleherein, wherein the first message contains a new transport network layeraddress of a GTP tunnel to be relocated.

Example 77 may include the CU-CP of example 75 or some other exampleherein, wherein a send message is transmitted to a DU, which contains anew transport network layer address of a GTP tunnel to be relocated.

Example 78 may include an apparatus comprising means to perform one ormore elements of a method described in or related to any of examples1-60, or any other method or process described herein.

Example 79 may include one or more non-transitory computer-readablemedia comprising instructions to cause an electronic device, uponexecution of the instructions by one or more processors of theelectronic device, to perform one or more elements of a method describedin or related to any of examples 1-60, or any other method or processdescribed herein.

Example 80 may include an apparatus comprising logic, modules, orcircuitry to perform one or more elements of a method described in orrelated to any of examples 1-60, or any other method or processdescribed herein.

Example 81 may include a method, technique, or process as described inor related to any of examples 1-60, or portions or parts thereof.

Example 82 may include an apparatus comprising: one or more processorsand one or more computer-readable media comprising instructions that,when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or moreprocessors to perform the method, techniques, or process as described inor related to any of examples 1-60, or portions thereof.

Example 83 may include a signal as described in or related to any ofexamples 1-60, or portions or parts thereof.

Example 84 may include a signal in a wireless network as shown anddescribed herein.

Example 85 may include a method of communicating in a wireless networkas shown and described herein.

Example 86 may include a system for providing wireless communication asshown and described herein.

Example 87 may include a device for providing wireless communication asshown and described herein.

Any of the above described examples may be combined with any otherexample (or combination of examples), unless explicitly statedotherwise. The foregoing description of one or more implementationsprovides illustration and description, but is not intended to beexhaustive or to limit the scope of embodiments to the precise formdisclosed. Modifications and variations are possible in light of theabove teachings or may be acquired from practice of various embodiments.

The invention claimed is:
 1. One or more non-transitory,computer-readable storage media including computer executableinstructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause acentral unit user-plane (CU-UP) of a base station (BS) to: receive, froma central-unit control-plane (CU-CP) of the BS, a bearer setup requestmessage; generate and cause transmission of a bearer setup responsemessage that is to include a transport network layer address (TNLA) anda tunnel endpoint identifier (TEID) for F1 uplink (UL) associated withthe CU-UP; and receive, from the CU-CP of the BS, a bearer modifyrequest message, wherein the bearer modify request message is to includea TNLA and a TEID for F1 downlink (DL) associated with a distributedunit (DU) of the BS.
 2. The one or more non-transitory,computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein the instructions,when executed by the one or more processors, further cause the CU-UP to:generate and cause transmission of a bearer modify response message thatis to indicate establishment of one or more general packet radio servicetunneling protocol (GTP) tunnels between the DU and the CU-UP.
 3. Theone or more non-transitory, computer-readable storage media of claim 1,wherein the CU-UP is implemented using virtualization technology orcloud computing technology.
 4. The one or more non-transitory,computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein the TNLA for F1 ULis selected from a plurality of TNLAs.
 5. The one or morenon-transitory, computer-readable storage media of claim 1, wherein aGTP tunnel is represented by a combination of a TEID and a TNLA.
 6. Theone or more non-transitory, computer-readable storage media of claim 1,wherein the TNLA and the TEID for F1 DL associated with the DU of the BSare generated by the DU.
 7. One or more non-transitory,computer-readable storage media including computer executableinstructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause adistributed unit (DU) of a base station (BS) to: receive, from acentral-unit control-plane (CU-CP) of the BS, a bearer context setupmessage that is to include a transport network layer address (TNLA) anda tunnel endpoint identifier (TEID) for F1 uplink (UL) associated with acentral-unit user-plane (CU-UP) of the BS; and generate and causetransmission, to the CU-CP, of a bearer context setup response messagethat is to include a TNLA and a TEID for F1 downlink (DL) associatedwith the DU.
 8. The one or more non-transitory, computer-readablestorage media of claim 7, wherein the CU-UP is implemented usingvirtualization technology or cloud computing technology and wherein theTNLA for F1 UL is selected from a plurality of TNLAs.
 9. An apparatus toimplement a central-unit user-plane (CU-UP) of a base station (BS), theapparatus comprising: interface circuitry to transmit and receivemessages; and processing circuitry, coupled with the interfacecircuitry, to: receive, via the interface circuitry and from acentral-unit control-plane (CU-CP), a bearer setup request message;generate a bearer setup response message that is to include a transportnetwork layer address (TNLA) and a tunnel endpoint identifier (TEID) forF1 uplink (UL) associated with the CU-UP and cause the interfacecircuitry to transmit the bearer setup response message to the CU-CP;and receive, via the interface circuitry and from the CU-CP, a bearermodify request message, wherein the bearer modify request message is toinclude a TNLA and a TEID for F1 downlink (DL) associated with adistributed unit (DU) of the BS.
 10. The apparatus of claim 9, whereinthe processing circuitry is further to: generate a bearer modifyresponse message that is to indicate establishment of one or moregeneral packet radio service tunneling protocol (GTP) tunnels betweenthe DU and the CU-UP and cause the interface circuitry to transmit thebearer modify response message to the CU-CP.
 11. The apparatus of claim10, wherein the CU-UP is implemented using virtualization technology orcloud computing technology.
 12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein theTNLA for F1 UL is selected from a plurality of TNLAs.
 13. The apparatusof claim 10, wherein the bearer setup request message further comprisesa data radio bearer (DRB) configuration.
 14. The apparatus of claim 10,wherein a GTP tunnel is represented by a combination of TEID and a TNLA.15. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the TNLA and the TEID for F1 DLassociated with the DU of the BS are generated by the DU.
 16. Anapparatus to implement a central unit user-plane (CU-UP) of a basestation (BS), the apparatus comprising: means to receive a bearer setupmessage from a central-unit control-plane (CU-CP) of the BS; and meansto generate and cause transmission, to the CU-CP, of a bearer setupresponse message that is to include a transport network layer address(TNLA) and a tunnel endpoint identifier (TEID) for F1 uplink (UL)associated with the CU-UP, wherein said means to receive is further toreceive a bearer modify message from the CU-CP, wherein the bearermodify message is to include a TNLA and a TEID for F1 downlink (DL)associated with a distributed unit (DU) of the BS.
 17. The apparatus ofclaim 16, wherein the means to generate and cause transmission isfurther to generate and cause transmission, to the CU-CP, of a bearermodify response message, wherein the bearer modify response messageindicates activation of one or more general packet radio servicetunneling protocol (GTP) tunnels between the DU and the CU-UP.
 18. Theapparatus of claim 16, wherein the CU-UP is implemented usingvirtualization technology or cloud computing technology and wherein theTNLA for F1 UL is selected from a plurality of TNLAs.
 19. One or morenon-transitory, computer-readable storage media including computerexecutable instructions that, when executed by one or more processors,cause a control-unit user-plane (CU-UP) of a base station (BS) to:generate a first transport network layer address (TNLA); generate andcause transmission of a bearer relocate message to a central-unitcontrol-plane (CU-CP) of the BS, the bearer relocate message comprisingthe first TNLA; and receive, from the CU-CP, a bearer relocationacknowledgment message indicating that the first TNLA has replaced asecond TNLA.
 20. The one or more non-transitory, computer-readablestorage media of claim 19, wherein the bearer relocation acknowledgementmessage comprises the first TNLA, wherein the first TNLA is for F1downlink (DL), and wherein the first TNLA is updated by a distributedunit (DU) for one or more general packet radio service tunnelingprotocol (GTP) tunnels.
 21. The one or more non-transitory,computer-readable storage media of claim 19, wherein the CU-UP isimplemented using virtualization technology or cloud computingtechnology.
 22. The one or more non-transitory, computer-readablestorage media of claim 21, wherein the first TNLA is assigned inresponse to a virtual machine migration or local failure.